DarioHealth says studies show effectiveness of its smart diabetes monitor
The company’s mobile monitor, developed in Israel, helps patients manage their diabetes on the go by providing an all-in-one blood glucose meter
Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter
DarioHealth Corp., a New York-based firm that has developed a smart device to monitor glucose levels in the blood, said Monday that two new studies show that users of its digital device saw improvements in their blood sugar level and blood pressure.
The company’s mobile monitor, developed in Israel, helps patients manage their diabetes on the go by providing them an all-in-one blood glucose meter. The plastic device, which looks a bit like a cigarette lighter, has a lancing device, a holder for 25 diabetes monitoring strips, and a fold-out, USB-like meter that connects to smartphones or tablets.
The users then just need to prick their fingers and press the blood over the strip that is inserted into the meter. The information is transmitted from the meter into the phone where the DarioHealth app reads the results, which can be sent to doctors and healthcare systems. The app also provides personalized coaching to help users make informed choices, while issuing real-time emergency alerts to family members via a text message, including the GPS location of the patient.
The firm, whose shares are traded on the Nasdaq, is expanding its solutions to include other chronic conditions, including hypertension and obesity.
The two new studies were presented at the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) 80th Scientific Sessions.
In the first study, Dario conducted a 12-month retrospective analysis of 9,200 non-insulin treated Type-2 diabetes users of the Dario device. A subgroup of users who participated in hypertension management were also evaluated.
Key results of the study showed that the average ratio of high blood glucose events was reduced by 26 percent and sustained during the full year. Users gradually increased their time between meals by 16% on average, and 71% of users who used the device to treat hypertension succeeded in reducing both their systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
In the second study, Dario conducted a two-year retrospective analysis on Type-2 diabetes users of the device, with key results showing that a group of 148 non-insulin users consistently reduced their blood glucose average by 18% on average, and sustained these values for two years. A subset that started with average blood glucose levels over 240 mg/dL managed to reduce their average blood glucose levels by 2.42%, Dario said in a statement.
“The results of these two studies demonstrate that the use of Dario’s therapeutic platform promotes behavioral modification, enhanced individual engagement and improved clinical outcomes,” the statement said.
“Behaviors play an outsized role in driving chronic disease outcomes,” said DarioHealth chief medical officer Dr. Omar Manejwala, in the statement. “These results demonstrate the extraordinary potential for our digital therapeutics to improve glycemic and blood pressure control which are key drivers of cost and clinical outcome in diabetes and hypertension.”
