The artificial pancreas: challenges and opportunities

Abstract

Research into closed-loop systems is advancing, but many issues remain. Conor Farrington reports. After a long lead-in period, artificial pancreas technology is well on its way to revolutionising the treatment of diabetes. The concept of closed-loop insulin delivery for people with diabetes in response to near-continuous blood glucose monitoring (CGM) was first elaborated in the 1950s, and functioning bedside and wearable systems were developed in the 1970s and 1980s. However, uptake was restricted by the size and complexity of component devices, and by various clinical and technical challenges.