The key to effective diabetes care involves regular and accurate monitoring of blood glucose levels through self-testing. This then ensure that patients take the correct dosage of medication.

 

Diabetes is one of the top killer diseases in Singapore, and about 11.3 percent of the population or more than 400,000 people have diabetes. A recent survey also suggests that by 2050, the number of people with diabetes in Singapore will rise to one in every two people, by age 70, which mean one million diabetics.

Diabetes can be effectively managed to reduce the risk of diabetes-related complications. The key to effective diabetes care involves regular and accurate monitoring of blood glucose levels through self-testing to ensure that patients take the correct dosage of medication. Furthermore, a recent survey showed that seven in 10 patients fail to monitor their glucose levels.

Abbott Diabetes Care is making monitoring easy with its new FreeStyle Optium meter, which features a no-coding benefit. This means that those with diabetes will no longer be required to calibrate their blood glucose meters. No-coding offers the user convenience and reduces errors from miscoding of his or her meter. The meter will be available in first quarter of 2013.

The company also is offering individually-wrapped FreeStyle Optium blood glucose test strips. This minimises exposure to air, moisture and cross-contamination of bacteria which may also lead to inaccurate blood glucose measurements. The current Optium Xceed meter is compatible with the new Freestyle strips.

 

 

The Freestyle test strips are now available at all hospital pharmacies, polyclinics, retail pharmacies like Unity, Guardian and Watsons as well as independent pharmacies. They come in strips of 25 – S$45 (inclusive of GST) and 50 – S$82. There is also a twin pack available of the 50 strips at S$130. Also available: FreeStyle Optium Ketone test strips (of 10 strips) at S$40.50.

 

---