Web-based decision support and telemonitoring system for the management of diabetes

Summary form only given. We have developed two prototype diabetic computer systems, supporting home data analysis and therapy recommendations for the individual patient, which aim to match the iterative practices of the medical profession and the patient's medical needs. Advanced methods of time series analysis are used to extract patterns and interpret abrupt changes in the patterns from home data. The first system focuses on visit-by-visit adjustments, based on the whole dataset collected between clinic visits; essentially a prototype for a physician assistant to be implemented as part of a diabetes management system with distributed intelligence. The second, evolved from the first, incorporates recent technological advances to extend it to a Web-based system. It provides day-to-day management support, access to electronic diabetes records for end-users, and real-time information for healthcare professionals to facilitate their decision-making. It integrates a portable glucometer, handheld computer, mobile phone and Internet access as a combined telecommunication and mobile computing solution for diabetes management. This system introduces an innovative online diabetes management concept, for example, online appointment and consultation, enabling users to access diabetes management information without time and location limitation and security concerns.