The World of Continuous Glucose Monitors [Circuits from a Systems Perspective]

Abstract

As of 2021, 537 million adults are living with diabetes: that is one person in 10. This number is expected to rise by 20% to 643 million by 2030 [1] . The rate at which the disease is spreading among the world’s population requires a new approach to management and care, and most importantly prevention. The prevalence of diabetes has seen health-care costs rise significantly over the past decade, further exasperating the issue. For example, in the United States the lifetime cost for managing one person with type one diabetes is approximately US ${\$}$ 1.5 million, totaling a staggering US ${\$}$ 1.5 trillion for all diabetic patients in the United States [2] . Fortunately, during the last decade there have been significant advances in diabetes prevention and management technologies, including continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), as introduced in our pilot article in our previous issue. Many doctors are now advocating for those who have not yet been diagnosed with diabetes, but may be at high risk or borderline, to start using CGMs for disease prevention, which ultimately will help save lives and health-care costs. CGMs are biosensors that measure glucose values in the subcutaneous space via a sensor that includes wireless transmission of data to a receiving device, such as a smartphone. In this article we will dive into the world of CGMs, beginning with what the system should include and relevant design constraints. We begin at the system level.