Type 1 diabetes is the inability of the pancreas to produce insulin. A hormone that helps cells absorb sugar in the blood and turn it into a source of energy. When this assimilation does not occur, glucose accumulates in the bloodstream causing diseases such as overweight, heart attacks or kidney failure.
According to the Spanish Society for Diabetes, in Spain 90,000 people suffer from this disease. Although the percentage of individuals who suffer from it is low -only 0.2% of the entire Spanish population-, it requires a specific and complex treatment based on periodic blood glucose tests, insulin injections and a strict diet.
Despite its seriousness, the small number of people who suffer from it means that there is little research, there is misinformation and the control mechanisms (glucometers) are expensive and insufficient. Taking this into account, new mechanisms are necessary to help patients suffering from this disease to have a better quality of life.
One such mechanism may be the blood sugar level sensor for type-1 diabetes patients developed by Hoop Diabetes. “We decided to create it as a result of the problems I saw in the meters used by my brother, who had been diagnosed with this disease in 2018,” explains David Reyes, co-founder and CEO.
“We want our prototype to correct the flaws that the competition's technology has, including the delay in displaying the glucose value. Most companies inform the patient with a delay of between 5-25 minutes”, states Àxel Rico, co-founder and CTO.
David Reyes and Àxel Rico, TecnoCampus students, started their project in 2020 with the intent to create an automatic insulin pump. However, due to the difficulties in developing the device, they decided to look for an alternative and focus on the development of the blood sugar meter. "We wanted to create a technology that could be assimilated to an artificial pancreas, but seeing that we did not have a sufficient level of knowledge, we decided to create the sensor," says Reyes.
“The prototype that we have designed during is based on optoelectronic technology that combines different wavelengths, which makes it possible to isolate the other compounds from the blood and extract the value of blood sugar”, Rico explains. "These values are analyzed through an algorithm and it gives the patient the data in real time," she adds.
The sensor project allowed both young people to receive the Creatic award for the best initiative with a social impact, valued at €6,000. “For us it is a recognition of the effort of two years of tireless work. We held meetings on the weekends or designed the business proposal at night after attending class. It was our project and, with this recognition, it will finally be able to materialize”, comments the CTO.
“The prize money will be used mainly for the development of the prototype. Although we will also use it to establish ourselves as a company and to apply for the patent”, mentions the CEO. To which he adds: "The fact of becoming a Start-up will give us access to new financing channels such as banks or venture capital funds."
One of the reasons Hoop Diabetes earned the Creatic Award for Social Impact Initiative was their goal of creating a community with customers. “Our purpose is not only to sell the product, but also for the diabetes patient to feel integrated into a group where he can express his concerns and his experiences”, explains David Reyes.
“For this we have created a comment section on our website and a group on the Discord platform. In it, our consumers will be able to access channels where they can share their stories and news about the disease, among others”, adds the co-founder of Hoop Diabetes.
“These interactions allow us to carry out an RD of our prototype based on co-creation. We look for our users to explain their problems to us in order to include them in the development. We want to create a tool that helps patients suffering from this disease”, explains Àxel Rico.
“In the short time that we have been here, we have achieved a community that has helped us a lot in our development, since most people with diabetes are very willing to share their experiences,” concludes the CTO of Hoop Diabetes.
Both founders have announced that they intend to release a prototype to carry out data acquisition by the beginning of 2023. And that once the monthly subscription service is launched, it will include services such as endocrinology or psychologists for patients.
