INDIAN GIRL DESIGNS PAIN-FREE INSULIN DELIVERY SYSTEM

Gujarati girl designs pain-free
insulin delivery system
[http://ethealthworld.indiatimes.com/photo/45617113.cms]

RAJKOT: - INDIA, 7/4/2015

Thousands and thousands of diabetics will have a reason to smile as they will be able to take their daily dose of insulin without pain. City girl Devina Kothari has developed an insulin delivery system that is virtually pain-free.

A graduate from CEPT University in Ahmedabad, with a post-graduate degree in industrial design from Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B), Kothari feels that her design will benefit children and teenagers the most.

She was recently given the Red Dot Award, considered to be the 'Oscar of Product Design' by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen, Essen, Germany, for the innovative insulin delivery system. Kothari's pain-free device is all set for commercial production by drug giant Sanofi.

The device comprises a close loop of two inter-connected units, one for monitoring the insulin level in the body and other to diffuse insulin. The monitoring unit has an embedded GPS with a microprocessor, LED display, physical connector and a stainless steel probe which functions as a biosensor and continuously detects and monitors the blood glucose level and the pulse rate.

Taking the input from the monitoring unit, the diffusing unit releases insulin according to the body's requirement. "The microprocessor is also connected with a back-lit LED which displays the current glucometer reading, pulse rate, insulin content in the reservoir and the current battery reserve of the microprocessor," Devina told TOI.

The device is highly-recommended for children, unconscious, handicapped, and dependent patients or those under intensive care as it monitors, delivers and alarms simultaneously without frequent human intervention, she said. "Use of an array of micro-needles for continuous transdermal diffusing of insulin is what makes the process pain-free," Kothari said, adding that she got the idea from a mosquito bite.