Techno-gadgets can make life easier for diabetes patients.

WASHINGTON -- Several new developments in medical technology are making life easier for diabetes patients, according to Amparo Gonzalez, president of the American Association of Diabetes Educators.

Ms. Gonzalez is also affiliated with Emory University, Atlanta. She spoke at a diabetes meeting sponsored by Avalere Health, and listed several products and concepts designed to improve management of the disorder:

* In-shoe pedometers. Unlike pedometers worn on a belt loop or put in a pocket, this Nike brand pedometer consists of a computer chip inserted into the sole of a walking shoe. The pedometer, which can be found in sporting goods stores, is wirelessly connected to Apple Inc.'s iPod MP3 player so it can transmit data about how far the person has walked. It can also cause music that is being played on the iPod to speed up so the person walks faster, she said. For those who want another way to figure out how far they've walked, the Google Earth Web site has a feature that allows users to enter their starting and ending points and find out the exact distance between them, Ms. Gonzalez noted.

* Blood glucose tracking. Lots of companies have developed software to help patients track their blood glucose measurements over time, Ms. Gonzalez said. "The challenge, from the diabetes educator's view or the physician's view, is to have [software] that will talk to all the [different] blood glucose meters." Even more important is making sure the data are being used to make changes, as well as to see whether any treatment or lifestyle changes are making a difference, she added.

* Blood glucose monitors. Because the "holy grail" of a noninvasive blood glucose monitor is now considered unlikely to be achieved, "improvements in technology are now moving in the direction of making things more accurate," Ms. Gonzalez said. A Food and Drug Administration-approved monitor might read "15% above or below what your actual blood glucose would be if you were testing it in a laboratory." The trend is to try to narrow that discrepancy, she said.

* Web-based eating support. There are quite a variety of on line weight-loss programs, as well as food databases, to help people find out how many carbohydrates there are in the food they eat, she noted. There are also online menus and recipes, as well as virtual coaches to help with lifestyle changes. "There are lots of diabetes patients outside the United States who work with U.S. diabetes educators by e-mail," she said.

* Telemedicine. Readings that are transmitted via telemedicine now include weight, blood pressure, and blood glucose, Ms. Gonzalez noted. "Still, with the patient having all this equipment at home, it's hard for them to use it. We've had conversations [in which the data recipients] wanted the scale to be [right there] as the patient got out of bed in the morning, so he couldn't miss the scale. We still need to have a person work with the patient to make these things happen."

* Insulin pens. Although they are available in the United States, they are much more widely used in Europe, she noted. "We need to use them more. They make life easier."

Ms. Gonzalez also mentioned one item on her own technology wish list: "We need a scanner that will really tell you how much food is on that plate," she said. "Human nature tends to underestimate. What is the reality of how many carbohydrates are there, so we could really take the right amount of insulin?"

BY JOYCE FRIEDEN

Senior Editor