A new glucose monitoring device has been found to cut by more than a third the length of time people with type 1 diabetes experience dangerous drops in their blood sugar levels.
The sensor device is worn on the back of the arm and scans a person's glucose readings all day and night, removing the need for routine finger prick tests and allowing users to adjust their insulin, eating and exercise habits as required.
A study of about 240 European adults with type 1 diabetes found those who used the Abbotts FreeStyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring System had shorter and fewer hypoglycaemic episodes when their blood sugar levels were low.
After six months, those wearing the device had the amount of time spent in hypoglycaemia sliced by 38 per cent, or from more than three-and-a-half hours a day to just over two hours.
The number of hypoglycaemic events were also cut by about a quarter.
Authors of the study, run by Sweden's Karolinksak University Hospital, said the results could have been aided by the fact the device provides a three-fold increase in the daily self-monitoring of glucose levels.
"Time spent in hypoglycaemia was reduced almost immediately as sensor-based results became visible to participants (before sensor results were reviewed with their clinician at a study visit)," the study, published in The Lancet on Monday, said.
An estimated 30-40 per cent of people with type 1 diabetes taking insulin experience up to three severe hypoglycaemic episodes each year, meaning their blood sugar levels drop so low they need urgent help from someone else.
They can become confused and disorientated, have fits or seizures, and lose consciousness.
Severe hypoglycaemia can be caused by missing a regular meal, overdosing on their insulin, exercise or alcohol.
The monitoring device, which became available in Australia in June, gives a glucose reading in less than a second, as well as an eight-hour history and a trend arrow showing the direction blood sugar levels are heading.
While some people involved in the study reported itching or rashes caused by the device, none had a severe hypoglycaemic episode.
The study's authors said more studies were needed to assess the device's effectiveness in younger people with type 1 diabetes.
