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Technology Helps Tame Colorado Teen's Diabetes

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Sep 4, 2009 4:53 pm US/Mountain

Technology Helps Tame Colorado Teen's Diabetes

Written for the Web by CBS4 Special Projects Producer Libby Smith

Reporting
Jim Benemann
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) ― Technology is making managing diabetes much easier and more accurate. Patients can monitor and keep their blood sugar levels near normal which will lead to longer happier lives.

"We've gone from a time that we really had very poor control of diabetes when I started in the 70's to a time when their control can be almost similar to someone who doesn't have diabetes," said Dr. Peter Chase, executive director of the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes.

Monica Lanning's blood sugar registered 90 on her Navigator glucose sensor. The device goes in her arm and sends glucose readings to a pager-like device throughout the day.

"She gets glucose levels every 5 minutes," Dr. Chase added.

The glucose sensor also keeps track of her levels over a course of several hours showing her patterns that help her make decisions about how much insulin to take. Lanning uses a pump to administer the insulin. Between the two devices she's able to keep her sugar levels near normal.

"I really like it. I mean because I get to poke my finger less and it'll tell me before I go low," Lanning, 15, told CBS4.

Lanning has had Type 1 Diabetes since she was two. She doesn't remember a time of not monitoring her sugar and taking insulin. Over the course of her lifetime, keeping her levels near normal are going to mean far less Diabetes-related problems.

"Essentially it should do away with kidney replacement, dialysis, should do away with loss of vision from the eyes, and make life much more bearable as she gets older," Dr. Chase explained.

For now Monica is just grateful to be wired for health.

Additional Resources:

Children's Diabetes Foundation is hosting the High Hope Carousel Ball on September 26th at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel. Entertainment includes singer Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, the band Earth, Wind & Fire, and singer Shawn King.

(© MMIX CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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