5 ms·

In the 90s I invested in MiniMed, and sales exploded. In the early 2000s they were acquired by Medtronic. This was the goal of MiniMed and I'm glad to see it

In the 90s I invested in MiniMed, and sales exploded. In the early 2000s they were acquired by Medtronic. This was the goal of MiniMed and I'm glad to see it come to fruition.

bjornsing 13y ago
My spontaneous thought when I saw this was "what took them so long?" Your comment makes me wonder even more. How come this is such a difficult problem?
- ars 13y ago
  I was wondering the same thing - a simple feedback loop can't be that hard to achieve can it? Put in some limits in case of sensor or pump error and maybe allow the user to boost sugar for activities, but otherwise this seems to me like a very very simple thing to do. What am I missing?
  - simplyinfinity 13y ago
    it probably it isn't , the problem is that the FDA is strict and it takes a lot of time even before starting human trials and even then it might take 5+ years depending on what is being tested. I've also heard of some drugs that take 30+ years to test for long term side effects ( that's assuming the medical company has the finances to support it for that long).
  - andrewtbham 13y ago
    The blood sugar sensors have been the problem.
  - SpikeDad 13y ago
    There have been several efforts at developing a blood glucose sensor that could work on the skin rather than with an invasive probe. None of those went anywhere. I assume this means that this is a very difficult task. Believe me as a Type II Diabetic that sticks their finger several times per day something that could detect your blood glucose without blood would be worth a LOT. I can't imagine what it would be worth to someone with Type I.
    - shanselman 13y ago
      It's complex because of LAG. Even a finger stick shows you your blood sugar in the past. When you take insulin it ALSO has a lag, as long as 30 to 90 minutes. Managing Type 1 diabetes is like controlling the Mars Rover. Source: Type 1 for 20 years on a pump and CGM Details: http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ItsWAYTooEarlyToCallThisInsulinPumpAnArtificialPancreas.aspx http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ItsWAYTooEarlyToCallThisInsuli...

In the 90s I invested in MiniMed, and sales exploded. In the early 2000s they were acquired by Medtronic. This was the goal of MiniMed and I'm glad to see it come to fruition.

bjornsing 13y ago

My spontaneous thought when I saw this was "what took them so long?" Your comment makes me wonder even more. How come this is such a difficult problem?

ars 13y ago
I was wondering the same thing - a simple feedback loop can't be that hard to achieve can it? Put in some limits in case of sensor or pump error and maybe allow the user to boost sugar for activities, but otherwise this seems to me like a very very simple thing to do. What am I missing?
- simplyinfinity 13y ago
  it probably it isn't , the problem is that the FDA is strict and it takes a lot of time even before starting human trials and even then it might take 5+ years depending on what is being tested. I've also heard of some drugs that take 30+ years to test for long term side effects ( that's assuming the medical company has the finances to support it for that long).
- andrewtbham 13y ago
  The blood sugar sensors have been the problem.
- SpikeDad 13y ago
  There have been several efforts at developing a blood glucose sensor that could work on the skin rather than with an invasive probe. None of those went anywhere. I assume this means that this is a very difficult task. Believe me as a Type II Diabetic that sticks their finger several times per day something that could detect your blood glucose without blood would be worth a LOT. I can't imagine what it would be worth to someone with Type I.
  - shanselman 13y ago
    It's complex because of LAG. Even a finger stick shows you your blood sugar in the past. When you take insulin it ALSO has a lag, as long as 30 to 90 minutes. Managing Type 1 diabetes is like controlling the Mars Rover. Source: Type 1 for 20 years on a pump and CGM Details: http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ItsWAYTooEarlyToCallThisInsulinPumpAnArtificialPancreas.aspx http://www.hanselman.com/blog/ItsWAYTooEarlyToCallThisInsuli...