Abbott Laboratories' FreeStyle<unk> . The sensor and transmitter are fixed to the upper arm and the receiver shows current blood<unk>  level and a graph of recent blood<unk>  levels. A<unk>  <unk>  is a device used for<unk> ing blood<unk>  on a continual basis by insulin-requiring people with diabetes, e.g. people with type I, type II diabetes or other types of diabetes (e.g. gestational diabetes). A<unk>  consists of three parts: a small electrode placed under the skin, a transmitter sending readings at regular intervals (ranging from every 5 to 15 min), and a separate receiver. Currently approved<unk> s use an enzymatic technology which reacts with<unk>  molecules in the interstitial fluid generating an electric current. This electric current (proportional to the<unk>  concentration) is then relayed from a transmitter attached to the sensor out to a reader which displays the data to the patient. Traditional fingerprick testing of blood<unk>  levels measures the level at a single point in time.<unk>  use allows trends in blood<unk>  to be displayed over time. Users must calibrate<unk>  devices with traditional blood<unk>  measurements.<unk>  is an increasingly adopted technology which has shown to have benefits for people with diabetes. Some studies have demonstrated reduced time spent in hypoglycemia or a lower glycated hemoglobin, both favorable outcomes. However, there are important limitations:<unk>  systems are not sufficiently accurate for detecting hypoglycemia, a common side-effect of diabetes treatment. This is especially problematic as some devices offer alarm functions to warn of hypoglycemic episodes and people might rely on those alarms. Therefore some manufacturers warn users of relying only on<unk> -measurements and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends to validate hypoglycaemic values via fingerprick testing of blood<unk>  level. Another limitation is that<unk>  levels are taken from the interstitial fluid rather than the blood. As it takes time for<unk>  to travel from the bloodstream into the interstitial fluid, there is an inherent lag behind the current blood<unk>  level and the level measured by the<unk> . This lag time varies based on the person and the device, and is generally 5–20 minutes.
Continuous glucose monitor
Noninvasive glucose monitor
Glucose meter
Glycated hemoglobin
Ambulatory glucose profile
Glucose clamp technique
Random glucose test
Glycemic index