Scientists close in on a pain-free method for controlling type 1 diabetes

Key Takeaways

• Scientists are developing a technique that would enable needle-free delivery of medication into the skin. 
• The new technique could be a game changer for 9 million people worldwide who have type 1 diabetes.

A game changer for patients with type 1 diabetes would be the ability to deliver insulin without needles or syringes. To accomplish this goal, Fernandez Rivas, a bioengineer at the University of Twente in the Netherlands, is leading a research project to develop a method to deposit liquids into skin and other soft materials using compression rather than needles. With the new technique, known as BuBble Gun, a laser beam is directed at the fluid medicine in a glass cartridge, heating it until it boils and creates a bubble. This bubble grows until it squeezes the liquid at high velocity—30 to 100 meters a second—out of its tube and, in the case of a medicine, into the skin. Rather than piercing the skin, the way a needle would, the drug is pushed between skin cells. This limits damage both to the skin and to the cells beneath it. “The liquid effectively becomes the needle,” said Rivas.

This approach could be a relief not just for the 9 million people worldwide who have type 1 diabetes but also for millions of others who have unrelated conditions that also require regular injections. “Removing pain and fear from the injection process will have a big impact on a lot of people with needle phobia,” said Rivas.

Edited by Miriam Kaplan, PhD

Source: Vittoria D’Alessio, Horizon: The EU Research & Innovation Magazine, Medical Xpress, March 29, 2024; see source article