Study: VeraLight's device detects diabetes more often

The results were presented at the 66th annual Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association. They showed the prototype medical device, the VeraLight Scout, was able to identify 20 percent more patients with type 2 diabetes or its precursor.

The study was conducted by researchers from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, TriCore Reference Labs, InLight Solutions and VeraLight.

Weighing 10 pounds, the VeraLight Scout uses proprietary fluorescence spectroscopic technology that does not require patient fasting. Subjects insert their forearm into the system, which looks like a drug-store blood pressure monitor. Scout shines various wavelengths of light on the skin to stimulate fluorescence that is measured by the machine to provide an indication of diabetes risk based on the presence of advance glycation endproducts, or AGEs. These AGEs are good predictors of the disease's serious complications.

Acting like a "diabetes odometer," the AGEs are sensitive to the cumulative damage the body has endured due to the effects of abnormally high blood sugar.

The study included 328 subjects at risk for diabetes or pre-diabetes. The oral glucose tolerance test, which measures blood glucose two hours after the oral administration of glucose, was used to confirm Scout results.

More than 73 million Americans, one third of the population, have diabetes or are on their way to getting it, according to the Diabetes Care journal. Current screening methods are inadequate and about 50 percent of diabetics are not identified until they present five to 9 years into the disease.

The technology behind VeraLight's Scout was first developed at Albuquerque's InLight Solutions, which, over 12 years, has received about $50 million to develop noninvasive glucose monitoring systems. In October 2004, InLight decided its development work had significant potential in the arena of diabetes screening so it spun off VeraLight.

VeraLight, based in Albuquerque, received $5 million in venture capital funding last year. The funding round was led by Utah's vSpring Capital and included Wasatch Venture Fund, also of Utah, as well as the venture investing arms of Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW - News) and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe of Colorado.