Patient Hurt by Do-It-Yourself Pancreas Prompts FDA Warning

Patient Hurt by Do-It-Yourself Pancreas Prompts FDA Warning

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned diabetics against building their own artificial pancreas system to help control blood sugar levels after a patient using one suffered an accidental insulin overdose.

A large community of diabetics has been using hacked-together, do-it-yourself systems to control their disease. The systems connect glucose monitors to insulin pumps using computer algorithms. They work around the clock, testing blood sugar and infusing insulin. Once the system is set up, they’re meant to require little effort by the patient.

While the individual components that make up a DIY system are generally approved by the FDA, they haven’t been tested or cleared for use together, the agency said in a statement. The accidental insulin overdose didn’t kill the patient, an FDA spokeswoman said.

“Patient use of unauthorized diabetes-management devices, alone or along with other devices, could result in inaccurate glucose level readings or




Next Article

  • UPMC Starts Telemedicine Company to Fight Infectious Disease

    UPMC Starts Telemedicine Company to Fight Infectious Disease

    PITTSBURGH – To help hospitals address a nationwide shortage of physicians specializing in infectious diseases, UPMC announced today that it has formed a telemedicine-enabled company called Infectious …

    Posted May 20, 2019telehealth

Did you find this useful?

Medigy Innovation Network

Connecting innovation decision makers to authoritative information, institutions, people and insights.

Medigy Logo

The latest News, Insights & Events

Medigy accurately delivers healthcare and technology information, news and insight from around the world.

The best products, services & solutions

Medigy surfaces the world's best crowdsourced health tech offerings with social interactions and peer reviews.


© 2024 Netspective Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Built on Mar 28, 2024 at 3:00am