Artificial Pancreas Reacts to Real-Time Glucose

An integrated insulin pump suspends insulin delivery once a diabetic’s measured blood glucose level falls below a preset level.

The Medtronic MiniMed 530G with Enlite sensor is in effect an artificial pancreas that delivers better comfort and reliable continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) accuracy. The threshold suspend feature automatically stops the delivery of insulin if glucose levels reach a threshold, which can be set by a healthcare provider between 60–90 mg/dL. Once the threshold is met, the MiniMed 530G system will first alert the wearer with an alarm; if sleeping, unconscious, or otherwise unable to react, the system will suspend all insulin delivery for two hours. Insulin delivery can be resumed at any time.


Studies have shown that in addition to a 31% improvement in overall accuracy, the Enlite sensor also detects up to 93%of hypoglycemia episodes when predictive and threshold alerts are on. The Enlite sensor is also 69% smaller than the previous Medtronic sensor, thus improving CMG comfort and providing a simpler sensor insertion process with a hidden-introducer needle. The Enlite sensor can also be worn for six days. TheMedtronic MiniMed 530G is a product of Medtronic (Minneapolis, MN, USA), and has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“The MiniMed 530G with Enlite can help people gain better control of their diabetes versus multiple daily injections,” said Katie Szyman, president of the diabetes business at Medtronic. “We are committed to advancing closed loop algorithms, continuous glucose monitoring, and insulin delivery technologies to bring new artificial pancreas systems to market.”

“The diabetes community has eagerly awaited approval of this system that stops insulin delivery when sensor glucose values fall below a predetermined threshold,” said Prof. Richard Bergenstal, MD, of the department of medicine at the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, USA). “We are hopeful that advances such as this and improvements in the accuracy of continuous glucose sensors will help people with diabetes strive for better control of their diabetes.”

An artificial pancreas is designed to replicate fully the function of the pancreas by monitoring glucose levels automatically and delivering appropriate insulin to people with Type 1 diabetes, requiring minimal to no interaction by the patient. Benefits of an insulin pump include increased flexibility in food choices, eating schedules, and activities, reduced injections, lower A1C level, reduced hypoglycemic events, and assistance with dawn phenomenon and delayed digestion (gastroparesis).

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