Project Lead(s): Sidhant Jena
Issue
Diabetes is a growing problem worldwide
Management of diabetes, a disease that affects 300 million globally, requires continuous monitoring of blood sugar.
Current approaches to blood glucose measurement are invasive and can be expensive. As a result, many people suffer complications associated with the disease.
Solution
The project began with the aim of using the camera in a mobile phone, in conjunction with a small lightbox attachment, to image and analyze blood glucose colorimetric strips.
However, due to technical and regulatory issues, the project team decided to explore an alternative approach of embedding a colour sensor inside the lightbox attachment and communicating with the phone via the audio jack, thus eliminating the need for using the phone camera.
While the initial aim of the project was to monitor blood glucose, the team realized that in order to ensure adoption, they needed to expand the scope of the product to:
a. Add more diagnostic parameters
b. Integrate a decision support system for the end user
c. Build a web-based platform for data storage, trending and analysis.
Outcome
The platform has been extended to analyze other colorimetric strips, such as lipids (total cholesterol, HDL, LDL and triglycerides), hemoglobin and ketones, and the team is currently working with a biochemistry partner to build a colorimetric HbA1c strip.
Decision support workflows have been developed for three different end-user applications: patients using the device for self-monitoring; front-line health workers using the device for screening and, finally, nurses using the device for in-hospital diabetes management.
A web platform was also built that can be used by physicians to monitor their patients’ data or by public health administrators to monitor screening programs in their respective districts.
The project team has signed an agreement with the Public Health Foundation of India and the Diabetes Education Academy to distribute the web platform for diabetes monitoring to nearly 2,500 physicians undergoing training in the Certificate Course in Evidence-based Diabetes Management.
The team is also speaking with both public and private pharmacy chains, such as Jan Aushadhi stores (Government of India), Apollo Pharmacy and Religare, to stock the product for retail distribution.