Google's prototype Smart Contact Lens for Diabetes Patients

Google has done it again. It has come up with another wearable eye device. And it isn't Google Glass in a contact lens. But if things fall into place, this might well be a step in that direction.

The company's Google X lab has just put up a teaser on it's blog of a smart contact lens, which helps diabetes patients keep track of their glucose levels.

The company revealed a functional prototype on January 16^th that uses a tiny wireless chip that contains a glucose sensor and an antenna thinner than a strand of hair, implanted between two soft layers of contact lens material. The contact lens, which is worn on the surface of the eye, is powered by tapping into the radio waves in the air and is designed to transmit data to a smart phone or other devices. Doctors are already saying, this device has the potential to not only replace the continuous glucose monitors embedded under the skin, but also one day replace the painful finger-pricking blood tests.

Google also mentioned, that scientist has long been looking in to how body fluids can help them track glucose levels. Tears, apparently works very well. But given that most people can't cry on demand, using tears was not really an option earlier. According to the company, the sensors, which are as tiny as bits of glitter, take about a reading per second. They also said, they' re trying to add tiny LED lights to warn the users when their glucose levels cross a certain threshold.

“Glucose level change frequently with normal activity like exercising or even sweating. Sudden spikes or precipitous drops are dangerous and not uncommon, requiring round-the-clock monitoring,” says Google X labs co-founders Brian Otis and Babak Parviz, in a statement sent to ABCNews.com. “Although some people wear glucose sensors embedded under their skin, people with diabetes must still prick their finder and test drops of blood throughout the day. It's disruptive, and it's painful. And, as a result, many people with diabetes check their blood glucose less often than they should. The company also said these are “early days” in its research and a lot more would be required to be known about the correlation between the tears and blood glucose and what lag time is there in detection, as well as how environment and other external factors such as heat and wind can affect tears.

The standard way to test the presence of glucose is by doing a blood. But traces of glucose is also found in many bodily fluids, such as those under the skin and in the eyes. But changes in glucose levels can be abrupt and there may be a lag time in detection in the eyes, feel the endocrinologists consulted by ABCNews.com.

The Director of Friedman Diabetes Institute at Beth Isreal Medical Center in New York city, Dr. Gerald Bernstein said about the Google X device that, “ the idea is terrific, if it can be done. It's not an easy thing to do.”.” Do I think this is the ultimate answer? Probably not. But I do think it's something worth pursuing. It's a lot more convenient than the current continuous monitor, which does the same thing.”

According to The American Diabetes Association, around 3 million Americans have type 1 diabetes. It is usually diagnosed in young adults, and was previously known as Juvenile diabetes. In this form of diabetes, the body doesn't produce insulin, the hormone which helps the body to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy.

Dr. Alvin Powers, director of the Vanderbilt Daibetes Center in Nashville said, “It's one of those things that gets a lot of attention. 99% of the people with diabetes don't use a subcutaneous sensor. Those people are pricking their finger [to measure glucose in the blood] because a device under the skin is very expensive and has to be calibrated on a regular basis. The would be true of the contact lens approach – you would have to have it calibrated to make sure it is meaningful”.

Google is also working with FDA and other experts to bring these prototypes and the technology to the market. These partners, then will use the technology for the smart contact lens and develop apps, that would make the measurements available to the wearer and their doctors.

Microsoft and other companies too, had previously shown off such similar lenses. But until now, there aren't any smart lenses available in the market. However, given Google's reach and ability to find the right partners, these smart lenses may soon be available in the market.