Wednesday, October 12, 2005

In the Works: A No-Prick Glucometer

Filed under: Diagnostics , Medicine , Pediatrics

Professor Joseph Chaiken of the Department of Chemistry at Syracuse University, has patented a technology that might result in a non-invasive and pain-free glucose meter. The technology is based on Raman spectroscopy and is called LighTouch™. From the Syracuse University press office:

The LighTouch uses a method called Raman spectroscopy to focus a laser--which Chaiken refers to as a "CD-player type of laser that has been kicked up a notch to deliver a purer red color,"--onto the fingertip and analyze the various colors of the light exiting the finger. These colors are indicative of the types and quantities of the different chemicals in the tissue being illuminated by the laser. By making two such measurements, first with the fingertip under no pressure and the second with slight pressure applied to the flesh, researchers are able to compare the measurements and analyze only those colors that come from the part of the fingertip which moves under slight pressure--the blood. The procedure is completely painless and produces results with accuracy and precision comparable to existing fingerstick devices.

"Just as an electrocardiogram machine (EKG) produces an electrocardiogram, the LighTouch produces a Ramagram," says Chaiken. Raman spectroscopy is a spectroscopic technique used in condensed matter physics and chemistry to examine vibrational, rotational and other low-frequency modes in a system. It is named for Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, who won the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering "feeble fluorescence," later known as the Raman effect, in 1928.

Experts believe Chaiken's pioneering work will result in increased regular blood sugar testing by diabetics, a critical step in controlling diabetes.

The press release...

LighTouch Medical, Inc., a spin-off, website...

Flashback: Fingernail Test for Osteoporosis (via Raman spectroscopy).

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