Seminar: Ramen Paranjape, "The Self-Aware Diabetic Patient"

The incidence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus is reaching epidemic proportions in the western world in recent times. Health care systems and providers are struggling to deliver the appropriate and necessary health care and support for patients as the plethora of diabetes related symptoms of this illness manifest in the afflicted population. In this seminar we present a 24-hr circadian, self-aware, stochastic model of a diabetic patient’s blood glucose levels. We develop the diabetic patient within a mobile agent environment so that the autonomy of the agent can be used to represent the autonomy of the individual human patient. Our work extends the original seminal work of Ackerman et al. (1965) of a mathematical model of the human glucose regulatory system. Their aim was to increase the understanding of normal and abnormal glucose regulation. Ackerman’s work has led to significant follow-on research including work by Wu (2005) in which Ackerman’s model was used to evaluate the degree of diabetes in a particular subject and his response to medications. Wu attempted to define the effect of the medication in terms of parameter fitting of blood glucose measured from a diabetic subject with or without medication. He attempted to assess the impact of the medication based on the values of the parameters in Ackerman’s model. This report presents typical data from our extended model of diabetes. We suggest that it is a more faithful model and can be used in simulation studies for education, health care planning and health care policy development. By examining the interactions of versions of this model with physicians, hospitals, and other components of the health care system new and interesting insights can be developed. R. Paranjape is a Professor in the Department of Electronic Systems Engineering at the University of Regina, Regina Canada. He is also a Section Chair, IEEE South Saskatchewan and the CEO of CRL Engineering.