SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dexcom, Inc., (NASDAQ:DXCM), a leader in continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) for patients with diabetes, announced today that the Dexcom Follow app is now compatible with Android devices. The app is a component of the Dexcom G4® PLATINUM Continuous Glucose Monitor System with Share™, the industry’s first mobile-connected CGM system. Already available to iOS-enabled devices, the Follow app allows family members, friends and caregivers (“Followers”) to remotely view a loved one’s glucose data and trends on their smart device, giving them peace of mind and reassurance when they are apart. CGM users (“Sharers”) can invite up to five Followers to view their glucose information via the Follow app. The Followers can view the Sharer’s glucose data and trends, as well as choose to receive alerts and notifications when the Sharer’s glucose levels are outside specified ranges.
“Dexcom aims for optimal convenience and accessibility by providing our patients and their loved ones with access to the most current technology to better manage their diabetes,” stated Kevin Sayer, Chief Executive Officer of Dexcom. “We are excited that the Dexcom CGM glucose data is now accessible on the Android platform, enabling more users to conveniently share their glucose readings.”
Continuous glucose monitoring is considered the most significant breakthrough in diabetes management in the past 40 years1. The traditional standard-of-care for glucose (blood sugar) monitoring has been a finger stick meter. CGM augments the use of glucose meters for the management of diabetes. Meters are still required to calibrate CGMs and for guidance in making therapy and meal decisions. CGM is important because, in addition to providing the glucose level, it provides the direction and rate of glucose change with the push of a button and alerts users when glucose is too low or too high.
Diabetes affects 29.1 million Americans and is the 7th leading cause of death in the United States.2 With diabetes, the body cannot produce or use the hormone insulin effectively, causing a buildup of glucose, or sugar, in the blood. It is estimated that approximately 86 million Americans over the age of 20 years old are at risk for developing diabetes (primarily Type 2), largely due to obesity, physical inactivity and poor diet.2 People with diabetes who take insulin must monitor their blood glucose levels frequently. Uncontrolled glucose can cause health complications and even death.3,4
Dexcom’s Follow App is now available for free download through the Google Play store. Customers can also download the Dexcom Share2 and Follow apps to their iPhone® for free from the Apple® App Store and to their Apple Watch through the Apple Watch App Store.
About Dexcom, Inc.
Dexcom, Inc., headquartered in San Diego, California, develops and markets continuous glucose monitoring systems for use by diabetes patients, as well as blood glucose monitoring systems used by healthcare providers in hospital critical care settings. For more information on the Dexcom CGM, visit www.dexcom.com.
To view multimedia assets, please visit: http://www.dexcom.com/media.
References
1. Clarke SF and Foster JR. A history of blood glucose meters and their
role in self-monitoring of diabetes mellitus.
Br J Biomed Sci.
2012;(3)2:83-93.
2. 2014 National Diabetes Statistics Report. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/statsreport14/national-diabetes-report-web.pdf Accessed March 31, 2015.
3. Hyperglycemia (High blood glucose). American Diabetes Association Web site. http://www.diabetes.org/living-with-diabetes/treatment-and-care/blood-glucose-control/hyperglycemia.html. Updated August 5, 2013. Accessed December 3, 2013.
4. Hypoglycemia (Low blood glucose). American Diabetes Association Web site. http://www.diabetes.org/living-with-diabetes/treatment-and-care/blood-glucose-control/hypoglycemia-low-blood.html. Updated July 16, 2013. Accessed December 3, 2013.