Missed doses of insulin cause complications. A new Medtronic app can detect when patients forget to take a dose.

Forgetting to take insulin before meals can be a problem that contributes to long-term diabetes complications, so Medtronic has developed what it says is the first system that recommends correcting missed or inaccurate insulin doses for people who inject insulin multiple times a day. .

Medtronic, which operates out of offices in Fridley, announced Wednesday that the Food and Drug Administration has cleared the use of its smartphone app for its InPen insulin injectors. The regulatory approval clears the way for the launch of a “Smart MDI” system that includes a smart insulin pen that tracks doses and a wearable monitor that measures glucose levels in real time for people who take multiple daily injections.

Managing diabetes is challenging, and figuring out when and how much to take insulin on a daily basis can lead to burnout, says Ke Dallara, head of Medtronic’s diabetes division.

“Our goal is to help simplify diabetes management and reduce guesswork by providing intelligent information that makes it easier to determine insulin needs so people can achieve their diabetes management goals,” Dallara said in an email.

The approval is the latest sign of growth for Medtronic’s diabetes group, which on Tuesday reported double-digit revenue growth in its latest quarter, outpacing the company’s other business segments. In August, Medtronic announced that rival Abbott Laboratories would release a continuous glucose meter that monitors a patient’s blood sugar levels that would work exclusively with MiniMed’s patented insulin pumps.

The InPen app is the face of Medtronic’s Smart MDI system, which includes a continuous glucose monitor and a smart insulin pen that communicates via Bluetooth with an app called “InPen: The Diabetes Management App” that helps people calculate accurate insulin doses.

Patients with diabetes may have difficulty calculating their insulin dose based on food intake or skipping a dose when they are busy or have an irregular schedule, says Diana Isaacs, director of diabetes technology education and training at the Cleveland Clinic. This can cause your blood sugar levels to spike, leading to thirst and frequent trips to the bathroom, and an increased risk of long-term complications, Isaacs says.

The system issues a “Missed Dose Alert” that helps minimize the incidence of elevated glucose levels and provides data to healthcare teams for subsequent analysis.