Sensyne Health has announced the commercial launch of its GDm-Health product, the patient app-to-clinician software system for the management of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).
GDm-Health replaces the traditional paper-based method of management.
The system comprises a smartphone application which connects to a wireless blood glucose monitor.
The woman's blood glucose measurements, any text-based commentary she wishes to log, and any request for a call back she makes are transmitted directly to a web-based clinical dashboard for the multi-disciplinary team at the hospital supervising her care to manage pro-actively.
The care team can see near-real-time data that has been prioritised through appropriate algorithms and can communicate directly with patients through the system.
The app has now completed its development following a two-year clinical evaluation in the NHS by over 1,000 women, and is currently available to pregnant women and their midwives at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust.
Three additional NHS Trusts will be implementing GDm-Health in the coming weeks, including Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, and Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
GDM is a pregnancy-related disease increasing in prevalence worldwide, driven by demographic and lifestyle changes.
In the UK, the rise is predicted to reach a prevalence of over 16%, from a baseline of around 4% in 2008, and is a condition that, without tight blood glucose control, can lead to adverse maternal and foetal outcomes.
Results published in March 2018 from a randomised controlled trial for GDm-Health, involving 203 participants, demonstrated its value to both women and the NHS including statistically-significant improvement in patient satisfaction, adherence to glucose monitoring, a reduction in caesarean sections, a trend towards reduction in pre-term births, and a potential for cost-savings to the NHS through improved patient outcomes.
Batoul Mustafa, a recent user of the GDm-Health app during her pregnancy, said: "GDm-Health is a great idea and really straightforward to use.
"It allowed me to better understand and manage my blood glucose levels.
"With the app, everything is in one place and it shares my data with my care team and allows us to communicate through the app outside my appointment times. I felt this technology was enabling me to have more-personalised antenatal care."
Dr Lucy Mackillop, s consultant obstetric physician at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and an honorary senior clinical lecturer at the Nuffield Department of Women's and Reproductive Health at the University of Oxford; is the clinical lead for the development of GDm-Health. She said: "I am delighted that GDm-Health has made the transition to a commercial product and is available for implementation across the NHS.
"This is as a result of an enormous amount of work by the clinical and academic teams at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Oxford and by Sensyne Health to have taken our prototype and transformed it into a sustainable, scalable product."
And Lord Paul Drayson, chief executive of Sensyne Health, told BBH: "The overwhelming positive response to GDm-Health from the NHS and from women with gestational diabetes is testament to its clinically-led design and the fact it is technology that is addressing an area of urgent, clinical need. We look forward to its wider adoption in the coming months."
