Needle free continuous glucose monitoring close to becoming available

Echo Therapeutics, a company based in Philadelphia, USA, have developed an innovative continuous glucose monitoring system that does not require a needle to be inserted under the skin to read blood sugar levels.
Continuous glucose monitoring describes any system that allows sugar level readings to be provided on a continual basis through the day and night. The Symphony® tCGM from Echo Therapeutics is able to send glucose level readings once each minute wirelessly to devices including a smartphone, computer or tablet device.
The sugar levels that continuous glucose monitors measure are not blood glucose measurements, instead they measure the glucose level in a thin film of fluid, called interstitial fluid, just under the skin, which provides cells with an alternative source of glucose and other nutrients. The sugar level of our interstitial fluid is generally a proportional value to that of our blood sugar.
The Symphony® tCGM is able to take sugar level readings without the need for a needle to be inserted thanks to the Prelude® skin permeation system which prepares the skin by removing older, dead skin from the surface. The Prelude can remove the outermost layer of skin within 10 seconds and then the skin is prepared for use for up to three days. After this period, a new area of skin can be prepared and used for monitoring.
Results of a clinical trial published in August showed that the Symphony® tCGM device achieved measurements that were clinically accurate for 98.9 per cent of readings. If the device receives FDA approval in the US, it could be available in the States as early as 2013.