Fourteen years ago, when Ed Damiano, an associate professor of engineering at Boston University, received a diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes for his son David, he began wondering if he could make a device that would help out. Developed by a collaborative biomedical team between BU and Massachusetts General Hospital, the device is worn externally and consists of two hormone pumps, an iPhone and a glucose monitor that measures blood sugar levels every five minutes. It is a marriage of biology and technology, with a powerful algorithm capable of recommending and delivering instantaneous blood sugar hormone balances better than any diabetic can replicate on his or her own. Clarizia brothers Colby, 21, and Carson, 10, had the opportunity to wear the bionic pancreas while attending Camp Joslin in Charlton over the past two summers, Colby last year and Carson this year.The device allows the campers five worry-free days of camp life. No checking blood levels while in the middle of baseball game, no worries about eating too much ice cream and paying for it later with low energy, listlessness and malaise.
Posted on: Sun, 14 Sep 2014 15:03:43 +0000