New Device

Bayer's New Contour TS Blood Glucose Monitor Launched

It eliminates miscoding errors which could put people with diabetes at clinical risk

Bayer Diabetes Care, a division of Bayer HealthCare LLC and a member of the Bayer Group, recently introduced the new Contour TS blood glucose monitoring system in Mumbai. Bayer's Contour TS offers people with diabetes an accurate meter option with innovative ‘no coding’ technology, which provides reliable blood glucose test results and eliminates miscoding errors that could put people with diabetes at clinical risk.

Speaking to Express Healthcare, Gaetan de Kerros, Vice President, Region Asia, Diabetes Care, Singapore, said, "India is the first country where Contour TS is being launched, as right now it is the diabetes capital of the world. After Mumbai, we will be launching our product in Chennai, Kolkata and then Delhi."

Unlike most meters that need to be manually coded to ensure accurate results, Bayer's new Contour TS blood glucose meter automatically sets to the correct code any time a Bayer test strip is inserted. Manual coding may lead to miscoding. In fact, a recent study found that approximately 16 per cent—or one out of six—persons failed to properly manually code their blood glucose meters to the lot of test strips being used.

"Miscoding may affect the success of self-monitoring of blood glucose in accurately measuring actual blood glucose values. No coding technology eliminates the risks associated with miscoding and improves the accuracy of blood glucose measurements. It increases confidence in blood glucose measurements, thereby reducing the risk of insulin dose errors that can sometimes lead to dangerous consequences," said Dr Pradeep Talwalkar, Professor of Diabetology, SL Raheja Hospital, Mumbai.

Some miscoded meters can generate results that may be inaccurate by over 40 per cent. Relying on a miscoded blood glucose meter could seriously impact therapeutic decisions for people who adjust their food intake, oral medication or insulin dosing based upon blood glucose readings.

A study published in the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology in March 2007 showed that some miscoded meters could lead to under-dosing or overdosing insulin by two units 50 per cent of the time.

Insulin overdose may cause dangerously low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) leading to behavioral changes, confusion, loss of consciousness and, if untreated, seizure, coma and even death. Chronic underdosing of insulin may contribute to the long-term health problems associated with high blood sugar including kidney disease, nerve disease, eye problems, and heart disease.

“With Bayer's new Contour TS meters, people with diabetes can now obtain accurate blood glucose test results in just eight seconds. It also offers a small (0.6 µL) blood sample size and multiple-site (fingertip, palm or forearm) testing options,” added Dr Talwalkar.

EH News Bureau