T_Dia
05-13-2008, 01:09 PM
Doctors are shining a new light on diabetes testing. It's an easy way to get diagnosed.
Twenty million Americans have diabetes, but many of them don't know it for years. By that time, they're at risk of severe complications like blindness or kidney disease. Now, a quick, painless test could encourage more patients to get tested sooner.
Shirley Loo has two siblings with diabetes, so she thinks before she eats. That's because she's aware of the risks of the disease.
"You can lose a limb. You can die of diabetes. You can go blind with it."
She avoids sweets, reads labels, and is taking part in a study looking at a new painless, bloodless diabetes test.
"I want to keep enjoying life and just have a great life and you need well being for that."
Researchers at MedStar Research Institute in Washington D.C. hope that a new light machine could replace the traditional diabetes testing method of fasting, drinking a sweet glucose solution and taking a blood test, a test that normally takes a couple of hours.
But the vera-light scout system has patients in and out in a flash. It uses fluorescent light to non-invasively measure the effects of high glucose levels in the forearm's connective tissue.
Dr. Robert Ratner with MedStar Research says, "We've been able to identify those biochemical changes that may reflect diabetes without the need of sticking the patient or drawing blood or sending samples off to a certified laboratory."
The machine shines a light onto the skin's surface and the layers of tissue immediately below. It measures how much light bounces back in very specific wavelengths.
Ratner says they "then compare the Scout measure with the overnight fasting with glucose method, and found that the Scout measure is as accurate, if not better."
Some doctors believe the test will be the future of diabetes detection! Shirley hopes the pain-free device will get others to get tested sooner.
"I wanted it to help. To make a difference."
This new technique only takes about three minutes to produce a result. And measurements can be made any time of the day because fasting is not required. It's still in the testing phases and not available yet for general use.
Full Article (http://www.wlox.com/Global/story.asp?S=8313053&nav=6DJI).
Twenty million Americans have diabetes, but many of them don't know it for years. By that time, they're at risk of severe complications like blindness or kidney disease. Now, a quick, painless test could encourage more patients to get tested sooner.
Shirley Loo has two siblings with diabetes, so she thinks before she eats. That's because she's aware of the risks of the disease.
"You can lose a limb. You can die of diabetes. You can go blind with it."
She avoids sweets, reads labels, and is taking part in a study looking at a new painless, bloodless diabetes test.
"I want to keep enjoying life and just have a great life and you need well being for that."
Researchers at MedStar Research Institute in Washington D.C. hope that a new light machine could replace the traditional diabetes testing method of fasting, drinking a sweet glucose solution and taking a blood test, a test that normally takes a couple of hours.
But the vera-light scout system has patients in and out in a flash. It uses fluorescent light to non-invasively measure the effects of high glucose levels in the forearm's connective tissue.
Dr. Robert Ratner with MedStar Research says, "We've been able to identify those biochemical changes that may reflect diabetes without the need of sticking the patient or drawing blood or sending samples off to a certified laboratory."
The machine shines a light onto the skin's surface and the layers of tissue immediately below. It measures how much light bounces back in very specific wavelengths.
Ratner says they "then compare the Scout measure with the overnight fasting with glucose method, and found that the Scout measure is as accurate, if not better."
Some doctors believe the test will be the future of diabetes detection! Shirley hopes the pain-free device will get others to get tested sooner.
"I wanted it to help. To make a difference."
This new technique only takes about three minutes to produce a result. And measurements can be made any time of the day because fasting is not required. It's still in the testing phases and not available yet for general use.
Full Article (http://www.wlox.com/Global/story.asp?S=8313053&nav=6DJI).