Diabetech Wireless Diabetes Intervention Technology Goes Global

Diabetech® takes steps toward global expansion of award winning North American based patient monitoring solution

Dallas, TX (PRWEB) April 19, 2005 --- Leading hospitals and diabetes centers throughout the U.S. are already demonstrating the ease and effectiveness of proactive intervention thanks to Diabetech's GlucoMON wireless glucose meter and the GlucoDYNAMIX diabetes intervention system. Frost & Sullivan recently recognized Diabetech for excellence in Patient Monitoring over all emerging mid-size patient-monitoring firms worldwide with the 2004 Niche Competitor of the Year Award.

Following the successful conclusion of the first ever fully integrated end-to-end wireless diabetes management system clinical trial in the summer of 2003, Diabetech partnered with Advantra International, part of the Punch International group and a leading developer and manufacturer of 2way radios and end-solutions for telemetry and fleet management applications. Advantras R&D team spent the next eighteen months developing the hardware and software of the DiaFLEX mobile medical telemetry platform within the GlucoMON device.

Based on the excitement created by this cooperation and by the GlucoMON in the U.S. market, Diabetech and Advantra are now looking together to develop a modified version of the product to support markets outside of North America using GSM/GPRS mobile networks. Advantra and Punch plan to begin manufacture of the GlucoMON in high volumes beginning mid-2005 to support growing clinical demand.

The GlucoMON works by connecting to the leading market share glucose meter in the U.S. and automatically, without changing patient behavior, transmitting blood glucose levels via nationwide wireless networks to Diabetech's managed patient record. With several million of these glucose meters already in use by patients, a ready market exists for an after-market real-time monitoring enhancement. In addition, Diabetech provides the medical management system including analytical tools for simplifying the process of assessing a patient's blood glucose control. Providers are then able to close the loop with patients and their caregivers in real-time through wireless text messaging as well as intelligent system generated alerts, reminders and reports.

Effortlessly connecting patients with their diabetes care team has been a long sought-after goal. Over ten years after the landmark DCCT trial, the challenge has been to bridge the information divide between us and our patients," says Stephen Ponder, MD CDE and Past Chair - National Certification Board for Diabetes Educators (NCBDE). "The GlucoMON wireless blood glucose device allows this to happen. Its an elegant solution to one of the most vexing of problems to face the diabetes community since the inception of home blood sugar testing".

"GlucoDYNAMIX means improved quality of life for the entire team of people living and working with diabetes. The requirement now for medical innovations is that they first simplify life for everyone concerned. That means no extra steps for patients and more efficient processes for providers", says Kevin McMahon, Diabetech's CEO. "With the global rate of diabetes onset on an exponential rise and the inability of the medical community to keep up, something had to change". With more frequent intervention by knowledgeable diabetes experts now possible, patients can learn to manage their disease faster and certain complications can be avoided.

Diabetech anticipates availability to the general market in both the U.S. and Canada later this year following regulatory clearance. Until then, clinical investigation at several sites around the U.S. continues in accordance with regulatory guidelines. Product readiness for markets beyond North America is estimated for 2006.

*The GlucoMON is presently an investigational device for use in approved hospital studies.

About Diabetech
Diabetech is an award winning diabetes technology company based in downtown Dallas, Texas. Diabetech manufactures wireless medical devices, operates service provider infrastructure, accelerates scientific predictive metabolic algorithm research and delivers a fully managed real time clinical management service. With simplicity at the core of our system design principles, Diabetech enables real-time diabetes intervention. For more information on the company, please visit www.diabetech.net

About Advantra International and Punch International
Advantra International designs, manufactures and markets a complete range of wireless products and total solutions for messaging, general telemetry and fleet management applications. For more information on the company, visit www.advantra.com.

Punch is a knowledge and technology provider 'par excellence, empowering all the companies within its group to create new technology that is marketable and profitable. Punch will apply all its knowledge and experience, and use its financial assets to help leverage potentially successful technology towards a higher level of maturity. Punch strives to meet its customers quality, costs, delivery and service demands with total solutions and empowers its clients to reach and surpass their goals and to establish a sustainable competitive advantage within their markets and gain market share. This approach enables Punch to continuously increase added value for its stakeholders: partners, shareholders, clients, suppliers, and society. Punch -- Empowering Technology

Punch is listed on Euronext Brussels and is part of the NextPrime index. All press releases and other information are available online at www.punchinternational.com

Diabetech is a registered trademark of Diabetech, LP. GlucoMON and GlucoDYNAMIX are trademarks of Diabetech, LP. All other trademarks are the property of their registered owners.

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