Companies offer hand-held tech options for patients to manage care

Tapping into the growing interest in hand-held gaming and apps among both kids and adults, two healthcare companies have released software to help make the management of diabetes and epilepsy more convenient.

Bayer Diabetes Care (Tarrytown, NY) has introduced the DIDGET blood glucose monitor, for kids ages 4 to 14, which connects directly to the Nintendo DS and DS Lite gaming systems. Aimed at helping kids with diabetes better manage their treatment, the DIDGET awards points that can be used to unlock new game levels and customize their gaming experience. The meter will also connect to Bayer's soon-to-be-released DIDGET World, an online community where users will be able to "spend" the points they earn from consistent blood-glucose testing and create their own page.

The Epilepsy Therapy Project (Middleburg, VA) released their iPhone app, My Epilepsy Diary, which is now available through the App Store. Joining the pool of medical treatment apps available in the App Store, My Epilepsy Diary allows consumers with epilepsy to "track events and manage epilepsy and treatments together with their healthcare team," according to the Epilepsy Therapy Project. With the app, users are able to track their seizures, side effects or other issues, as well as record medications and dosages and receive text or email alerts reminding them to take their medication.

The app allows patients to email seizure activity reports and medical histories directly to their physicians, allowing healthcare professionals to improve patient treatment as they receive real-time data.

An estimated 186,300 people under the age of 20 in the United States have diabetes, and approximately three million Americans are affected by epilepsy.