HOUSTON - A major development in helping children with Juvenile, or Type 1, Diabetes. The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation announces an artificial pancreas is now being developed and is expected to change and save lives.
JDRF is partnering with Johnson & Johnson's Animas Corporation, to develop the first artificial pancreas.
We found a mother in Sugar Land, who has been volunteering and raising money for JDRF, to go specifically toward funding the new device. Lisa Brettman's 16-year old son, Trevor, has been dealing with Type 1 Diabetes most of his life.
"This is life changing for us... for those of us who live with Type 1 diabetes. We live in fear all the time," says Lisa.
Living with Type-1 diabetes is definitely demanding.
"From playing the trumpet, to playing video games, and even sleeping - pretty much everything I do... it has changed every single thing," says Trevor.
The artificial pancreas will be software that stays on the outside of the body, along with an insulin pump and a continuous glucose monitor (which measures blood sugar levels).
"This new project will allow the two to talk to each other, so that the continuous glucose monitor can say to the pump - hey, the kiddo's blood sugar is too high so it's time to give him insulin now, and the pump will give him insulin. Or if it's too low, it can stop administering insulin," says Molly Naylor, who is the the Executive Director of the Houston Chapter of J.D.R.F.
She goes on to say, this is a huge development!
"It means kids won't end up in hospitals with comas or seizures, it means parents don't have to get up 5-6 times a night to check blood sugars, because they're afraid these kids won't wake up the next morning."
"It'll be really, really, really helpful, I can't even describe it. It will make the future that much brighter, and I could live every single day that much easier," says Trevor. "It will help get rid of the fear, some of the fear, we live with on a daily basis", says Trevor's mom.
Source : foxhouston.com
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