Team 21

GlucoGuard: Autonomous Oral Drug Delivery for the Prevention and Treatment of Nocturnal Hypoglycemia in Diabetics

Team Members: Michael Grapp
Cade Montplaisir
Ty Promreuk
Mauro Robles
Zachary Smith

Team Mentors: William Tyler, PhD - SBHSE
Jessica Weaver, PhD - SBHSE

YouTube Link: View the video link below before joining the zoom meeting

Zoom Link: https://asu.zoom.us/j/86323861883

Abstract

Hypoglycemia is a condition in which a diabetic’s blood glucose drops to unsafe levels. This can result in dizziness, loss of coordination, loss of consciousness, and in severe cases, death. In fact, according to the American Diabetes Association, as many as 1 in 10 type 1 diabetics will die from hypoglycemia. While hypoglycemic episodes are always a serious threat, during sleep, this threat is increased as a patient may be unable to recognize that they are slipping into an episode before they become unresponsive and unable to treat themselves. Because of this, over half of all severe hypoglycemic episodes occur at night when the patient is most vulnerable. In the case that a patient becomes unresponsive during a hypoglycemic episode, responsibility falls on a third party to recognize what is happening and intervene to administer aid. Currently, injectable glucagon, glucose tablets, and glucose gels are the market standard for treating hypoglycemic episodes. All these products require either the user or a third party to administer them manually, an option that is not always available. Our solution to this problem is GlucoGuard, a retainer that is worn while the patient is sleeping to prevent and treat hypoglycemic episodes. Our device’s competitive advantage is that it can deliver glucose to correct a low automatically, without user or third-party action. GlucoGuard works by communicating with a third-party continuous glucose monitor to analyze a patient's blood glucose levels and trends. This allows it to administer glucose solution as needed to prevent and treat nocturnal hypoglycemic episodes.