Ophthalmic glucose monitoring using disposable contact lenses

Abstract

We have developed a range of disposable and colorless tear glucose sensing contact lenses, using off-the-shelf lenses embedded with new water soluble, highly fluorescent and glucose sensitive boronic acid containing fluorophores. The new lenses are readily able to track tear glucose levels and therefore blood glucose levels, which are ideally suited for potential use by diabetics. The fluorescence responses from the lenses can be monitored using simple excitation and emission detection devices. The novelty of our approach is two fold. Firstly, the notion of sensing extremely low glucose concentrations in tears, which track blood levels, by our contact lens approach, and secondly, the unique compatibility of our new glucose signaling probes with the internal mildly acidic contact lens environment. The new lenses are therefore ideal for the noninvasive and continuous monitoring of tear glucose, with a 15 minute response time, and a measured shelf life in excess of 3 months. In this invited article, we show that fluorescence based signaling using plastic disposable lenses, which have already been industrially optimized with regard to vision correction and oxygen / analyte permeability etc, may a notable alternative to invasive and random finger pricking, the most widely used glucose monitoring technology by diabetics.