'Smart' Glucose Monitoring System Gets Green Light

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system.

The FDA approved the Guardian Connect CGM system for those with diabetes who are between the ages of 14 and 75. The Guardian Connect CGM system is the first standalone CGM system to help people with diabetes manage their condition in a proactive manner — it helps predict blood sugar levels up to 60 minutes in advance.

The Guardian Connect CGM system requires the user to insert a small sensor below the skin in the stomach or upper arm. The sensor can be worn for up to seven days. It measures blood sugar levels and transmits the readings to an app on the person's phone every five minutes. Users will receive predictive alerts of low or high blood sugar in advance. This is meant to allow the user to take the necessary actions to keep blood sugar at the desired level.

The Guardian Connect system is used in combination with a smart diabetes assistant called Sugar.IQ. This artificial intelligence technology continually analyzes how blood sugar levels respond to food intake, insulin and daily routines.

"With predictive alerts and the Sugar.IQ assistant, the Guardian(TM) Connect system enables people to proactively manage their diabetes, so they can focus on living their life, not constantly worrying about their glucose levels," said Annette Bruls, president of Diabetes Service and Solutions at Medtronic, in a press release.

The FDA granted the approval of the Guardian Connect CGM system to Medtronic. The system will be available in limited quantities in May 2018.