Color-Shifting Contact Lenses Alert Diabetics to Glucose Levels [Contacts]

Diabetics are saddled with the unenviable task of checking their blood sugar levels constantly. But a new non-invasive technology lets diabetics keep tabs on their glucose levels with contact lenses that change colors as their blood sugar rises and falls.

Nanoparticles — is there anything they can't do? — embedded in the hydrogel lenses react with glucose molecules in naturally occurring tears. A chemical reaction then causes the lenses to shift their hues, alerting the wearer to falling or spiking blood sugar levels. The wearer can then make the appropriate adjustments to his or her blood sugar, all without having to carry around (and use) devices for drawing and analyzing blood.

U. of Western Ontario Professor Jin Zhang has just collected $216,000 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation as a result of the breakthrough process to develop other applications for multifunctional nanocomposites, which can be used in everything from biomedicine to food preservation to packaging. We think a head-up display for glucose levels is pretty good, but if nanocomposites can also make the packaging on that blood-sugar-leveling candy bar biodegrade more quickly, all the better.

[Gizmodo via Institute of Nanotechnology]

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GE's New Ultra Small Ultrasound May Become as Ubiquitous as Stethoscope

Yesterday at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco, GE showed off their new handheld ultrasound device.























The Vscan looks like a cross between an iPod and a cell phone, making it possibly the world's smallest ultrasound. Later today we'll be attending GE's healthymagination technology showcase in New York where further details and specs will hopefully become available.

For critical care clinicians, Vscan can offer an immediate look beyond patient vital signs with the potential to identify critical issues, like fluid around the heart, which could be a sign of congestive heart failure. And for cardiologists, Vscan provides a dependable visual evaluation of how well the heart is pumping at a glance, so they can treat patients more efficiently.

[Medgadget]