Effect of Electrode Structure on Glucose Monitoring by Reverse Iontophoresis

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Diabetes Technology

Background:

• Noninvasive continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) using reverse iontophoresis (RI) is crucial for diabetes management.
• Key challenges include reduced sensor sensitivity and insufficient glucose extraction flux, impacting accuracy.
• The influence of electrode structure on RI performance has not been systematically investigated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To comprehensively investigate the impact of electrode structure on reverse iontophoresis (RI) efficiency and accuracy for CGM.
• To optimize electrode design to enhance glucose monitoring performance.
• To validate the optimized design through in vitro experiments and human trials.

Main Methods:

• Multiphysics simulation to model iontophoresis.
• In vitro experiments to assess sensor performance.
• Human trials to evaluate clinical accuracy of the optimized CGM device.
• Systematic variation of electrode spatial arrangement, spacing, shape, and position.

Main Results:

• Optimized electrode geometry minimized sensor sensitivity decline and maximized glucose extraction flux.
• Human trials demonstrated improved accuracy with 74% of data points in the Clarke error grid A zone.
• The optimized design achieved a mean absolute relative difference (MARD) of 13.17%, a significant improvement over the previous structure (21.06%).

Conclusions:

• Electrode structure plays a critical role in the efficiency and accuracy of RI-based CGM.
• Optimized electrode design enhances noninvasive glucose monitoring, offering a more reliable solution for diabetes management.
• This study provides a foundation for developing more accurate and effective noninvasive glucose sensors.