Smart meters to fuel growth
Sales of self-test glucose meters are currently trending down, but with the flood of new personalized, app-friendly meters submitted to the Food and Drug Administration for approval, sales may trend positive in 2016. Cash sales of glucose meters declined 3.6% for the 52 weeks ended Dec. 27, 2015, to $287.5 million across total U.S. multi-outlets, according to IRI.
(Click here for the full Category Review.)
“Companies incorporating digital technology, like apps and networks, to existing platforms will thrive in the concentrated U.S. diabetes diagnostics space,” said Aish Vivekanandan, healthcare industry analyst for Frost & Sullivan, in a market report published last fall. “Moreover, the integration of diagnostics and treatment in an individual’s diabetes care will enable companies to provide personalized treatment.”
Connected care was a theme among many of the latest innovations at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. For example, AT&T and YOFiMeter announced an agreement that will enable people with diabetes to wirelessly transmit their blood sugar levels, other biometric data and voice notes to health practitioners or caregivers. Once cleared by the FDA, the YOFiMeter Connected Glucose Meter will open another line of communication between caregivers and patients over AT&T’s secure network.
In December, the FDA approved LabStyle Innovations’ Dario Diabetes Management Solution, an all-in-one system that helps people with diabetes proactively manage their diabetes using their smartphone. Dario connects via a headphone jack to turn a mobile device into a glucose monitor, and provides real-time and historical blood-glucose data to allow healthcare providers to spot patterns, recommend treatments and support behavior changes. Dario’s web interface also makes it easy for users to share health information with healthcare providers.
Looking beyond 2016, however, the overall diabetes diagnostics market may begin to pull away from self-testing, according to the latest research from Frost & Sullivan. “In the next decade, noninvasive methods — such as bio-sensor, near-infrared and disposable patches — will essentially replace self-monitoring blood-glucose tests,” Vivekanandan said. “Pioneering noninvasive technologies like Google’s tear-analyzing contact lenses and Miraculins’ noninvasive [point-of-care testing] will transform diabetes diagnostics.”