For the 82nd time, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) Scientific Sessions convened to highlight all the innovations within the diabetes technology space.
Major players like Dexcom, Medtronic, Abbott, Insulet and more continue to plug along, while companies like Bigfoot Biomedical, One Drop and others shared data backing the technology that they bring to the table.
The data showcased at ADA supported the usual continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) and automated insulin delivery (AID) technology, plus different digital health platforms and diabetes reversal procedures.
BTIG analyst Marie Thibault wrote in a report that there was plenty of buzz on the ground at the event, particularly around Insulet’s Omnipod 5 AID system, Abbott’s recently FDA-cleared FreeStyle Libre 3 CGM and Bigfoot Biomedical’s Bigfoot Unity platform.
“In general, we believe that accuracy and clinical benefit is proven for all commercial CGM and AID offerings and that various device features, pricing, and business models are now likely to drive the next leg of adoption across different segments of the patient population,” Thibault wrote.
Here are some of the biggest stories to come from the ADA 2022 Scientific Sessions:
Dexcom CEO expects ‘science boom’
Kevin Sayer, the CEO of Dexcom (Nasdaq:DXCM) — the maker of the leading G6 CGM system and the next-generation G7, which is expected to receive FDA clearance soon — sees a big future for the integration of CGM and AID.
Sayer has seen through partnerships with Insulet and Tandem Diabetes Care how successful it can be and he believes that, with pump penetration not yet passing 50% of intensive insulin users, room for growth remains.
“I think you’ll see a science boom over the next 10 years with this stuff,” Sayer told Drug Delivery Business News. “It can give people opportunities to pretty much get out of their diabetes care and let systems do it. Right now, we’re not there, and there’ll be a lot of trials and a lot of pain.
“So, then, how does Dexcom play into this? The most important element is giving somebody an accurate glucose reading that is communicated on a timely basis. The second-most important element is an algorithm that can drive that outcome, and we’ve got access to both, and we’ve got partners who can use it. We’re very excited about the future here.”
Medtronic’s next-gen insulin pump performs well
Results from real-world analyses in Europe and Chile, along with clinical data highlighted the effectiveness of Medtronic’s (NYSE:MDT) next-generation MiniMed 780G insulin pump with Guardian 4 sensor technology.
The MiniMed 780G advanced hybrid closed loop system, designed with meal detection technology and automatic adjustments and corrections to glucose levels every five minutes, demonstrated improvements in glycemic outcomes that met consensus guideline recommendation of 70% time in range with less user interaction.
MiniMed 780G with the next-generation Guardian 4 sensor has not yet received FDA clearance, although Medtronic leadership anticipates the regulatory nod at some point during the company’s 2023 fiscal year.
Data backs newly cleared Abbott FreeStyle Libre 3
The latest version of the Abbott’s (NYSE:ABT) FreeStyle Libre platform — designed as the smallest and thinnest CGM sensor in the world at the size of just two stacked U.S. pennies — picked up FDA clearance for people with diabetes aged four years old and up just last week.
Late-breaking data highlighting the mean absolute relative difference (MARD) — a measure of sensor accuracy — for the recently cleared CGM was presented ADA, demonstrating an overall MARD of 7.9%, makes FreeStyle Libre 3 the first and only 14-day CGM to achieve a sub-8% overall MARD, according to the company.
Further data presented by Abbott at ADA showed that FreeStyle Libre helps prevent therapeutic inertia and that the company’s new glucose pattern insights report in the LibreView software platform helps primary care providers identify and treat hypoglycemia events that are missed when using standardized reports.
Insulet’s Omnipod 5 improves outcomes in children
Insulet’s (Nasdaq:PODD) Omnipod 5 significantly improved time in range and reduced HbA1c in children aged 2 through 5.9 years old with type 1 diabetes over 12 months of use, according to the company. Earlier this year, the Omnipod 5 became the first tubeless, wearable automated insulin delivery system cleared for marketing in the U.S.
The data was collected from a pivotal trial extension that followed a three-month study demonstrating the patch pump system’s safety and efficacy. When invited to continue in an ongoing 12-month (plus) extension, 100% of participants continued.
After all participants completed 12 months total (three in the original study plus nine in the extension), average HbA1c totaled 6.9%, compared with 7.4% at baseline and 6.9% at the end of three months. Time in range during months 10-12 of use was 67.6%, compared to 57.2% during standard therapy and 68.1% during the three-month pivotal trial.
Bigfoot Unity can provide better glycemic control
Bigfoot Biomedical presented data from a real-world retrospective analysis suggesting that, for those on multiple daily injections (MDI) of insulin, the Bigfoot Unity platform has the potential to provide rapid and durable glycemic control improvements.
The analysis looked at 49 people with diabetes at an average age of 60.3 years old. Bigfoot said 81.6% were type 2 and 71.7% used CGM previously but were new to smart pens and diabetes app. A minimum of 50% CGM data within the first two weeks and the third month were required to be part of the analysis.
According to Bigfoot, the study observed strong glucose control at three months of use with Bigfoot unity with the mean Glucose Management Indicator (GMI), calculated from CGM readings, coming in at 7.5% from a baseline mean HbA1c of 8.5%.
Here are a few more stories from ADA that are worth checking out:
- Tandem reports positive data for t:slim X2 insulin pump with Control-IQ technology
- Data demonstrated immediate and sustained benefits in a diverse cohort of participants using Tandem Diabetes Care’s t:slim X2 with Control IQ technology.
- Study backs DarioHealth’s digital therapeutics for managing diabetes
- The studies add to DarioHealth’s evidence supporting an integrated approach to managing multiple chronic conditions, including one study assessing the impact across ethnicities of users living with type 2 diabetes.
- One Drop studies show improved attitudes toward CGM, diabetes management platform
- New research looked at the attitudes toward and adoption of continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) among people with type 2 diabetes.
- Virta Health reports positive results from diabetes reversal study
- Virta’s diabetes reversal showed lasting improvements in those with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes, including blood sugar control, clinically significant weight loss, reduced inflammation and improvements in other cardiometabolic health markers.
