Diabetes is a disease that occurs when the body cannot regulate its blood glucose levels. Raised glucose levels can lead toand other conditions, so it is vital that people with diabetes maintain their blood glucose at moderate levels.
People with diabetes have traditionally monitored their blood glucose using devices that analyze a drop of blood though pricking a finger several times a day. More recently, implanted sensors can provide continuous glucose monitoring without unpleasant pinpricks, but these devices can be less accurate for lower glucose levels and are not approved for children.blood glucose levels
. But glucose concentrations are much lower in saliva than in blood, which has made it difficult to measure accurately without sophisticated laboratory equipment. The KAUST team has now created a highly sensitive glucose detector based on a thin-film transistor. These small, lightweight and low-power devices could be suitable for
as inexpensive disposable sensors, says team member Abhinav Sharma."An easy-to-use noninvasive glucose-measuring device using saliva as a medium could be life-changing for millions of patients worldwide," he says.