Director, Technology and Scientific Affairs
A. Menarini Diagnostics, Italy

Overview of the commercially successful Implantable Glucose Sensors: Key features and requirements for Performance, Safety and Reliability

In recent years one of the more successful field of development of  fully or partially implantable medical devices has been the one of the sensors for monitoring blood glucose in diabetic patients. As a natural evolution of  the devices for Self Monitoring of Blood Glucose based on fingerstick and application of a blood drop on a glucose biosensor strip, a new category of innovative, implantable devices have been introduced into the market. These devices, usually referred as Continuous Glucose Monitoring Systems (CGMs), can be applied or implanted in the human body for days or weeks, and are able to measure continuously the glucose concentration. Only few technologies succeeded as commercial products, due to the challenging requirements for an acceptable use. A review of these technologies will be developed, and analysed the issues addressed for a successful clinical application in terms of performance, safety and reliability.

About the speaker:
Francesco Valgimigli is Head of Technology and Scientific Affairs at A. Menarini Diagnostics, an Italian company founded in 1976 as a division of the multinational pharmaceutical group A. Menarini Industrie Farmaceutiche Riunite, and operating in the market of Diabetes Care, where achieved growing positions in Europe. He has a Master Degree in Electrical Engineering and a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the Universities of Florence and Bologna, Italy respectively, and more than 20 years of experience working as product designer and project manager in the In Vitro Diagnostics and Medical Device industry.
In A. Menarini Diagnostics Francesco is involved since 1996 in medical products development, and new devices clinical validation. His main achievements have been in design of laboratory instrumentation for haematology, devices for Self Monitoring of Blood Glucose in diabetic patients (SMBG) and innovative, implantable Continuous Glucose Monitoring Systems (CGMs). In these areas he conducts research on biosensor technology, biocompatibile membranes for implantable sensors and sampling techniques of biomolecules from the human body. Francesco is responsible for development teams and multidisciplinary projects, also in co-operation with international research institutes and industrial partners world-wide. Previously, he held roles in various medical industry organisations, mainly in R&D management. Francesco holds various patents and has published many articles in peer-reviewed journals.