Novo Nordisk’s Smart Connected Pens Are Now Compatible with Abbott’s FreeStyle LibreLink App

GATWICK, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--This material is intended for UK medical and pharmaceutical trade media only. For journalistic assessment and preparation before publication.

People living with diabetes in the UK who use Abbott’s FreeStyle LibreLink app with FreeStyle Libre glucose sensing technology*, can now connect it to Novo Nordisk’s smart connected pens. This allows people living with diabetes to see how different factors like dose timing and the amount of insulin taken impact their individual glucose patterns.^1,2

Healthcare professionals often ask people living with diabetes to keep a record of their insulin dose data, to add context to their glucose readings. Completing this process manually can be time-consuming and result in missing, incomplete, or inaccurate data.³ When people tap Novo Nordisk’s smart connected pens, NovoPen^® 6 or NovoPen Echo^® Plus, against their smartphone their insulin dose data is automatically uploaded to the FreeStyle LibreLink app. It can then be viewed alongside their glucose data in one place.

“Individually these two technologies provide valuable information for people managing their diabetes. Linked together, however they can provide an additional insight into the impact of both dosing and timing of injection on glucose levels. Providing people with diabetes and health care professionals with this insightful information offers an additional perspective, much like adding another piece to the puzzle – we see more of the overall picture, on which to base diabetes management decisions,” said Su Down, Nurse Consultant in Diabetes, Somerset Foundation Trust.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, the Primary Care Diabetes Society (PCDS) forecasted diabetes review backlogs of up to a year.⁴ Smart connected pens and glucose sensing technology could play a role to support the NHS in clearing this backlog, as data show they may help people with diabetes reduce their risk of hyper or hypo-glycaemic events.^5,6,7,8

Novo Nordisk believes that digital health solutions can support people with diabetes and their healthcare professionals with reliable information. We are proud to be working alongside a wide range of partners to help bring digital health solutions to as many people as possible.

“People living with diabetes can make up to 180 additional health-related decisions a day compared to people without diabetes – the constant multi-tasking can be emotionally and physically draining,” said Pinder Sahota, General Manager, Novo Nordisk UK. “I hope that bringing glucose and insulin data together in one place will make some of these decisions a little easier, giving people living with diabetes in the UK more time and energy back for day-to-day life.”

*FreeStyle, Libre, and related brand marks are marks of Abbott and used with permission.

About Diabetes in the UK

Diabetes is a non-communicable disease which causes a person’s blood sugar levels to become too high.⁹ In the UK there are more than 4.9 million people living with diabetes, of these, 90% have type 2 diabetes, around 8% have type 1 diabetes and 2% have other rarer forms of diabetes.¹⁰ Uncontrolled high blood sugar levels can increase the risk of developing complications such as diabetic retinopathy, foot problems and cardiovascular disease.¹¹

About Novo Nordisk

Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company, founded in 1923 and headquartered in Denmark. Our purpose is to drive change to defeat diabetes and other serious chronic diseases such as obesity and rare blood and endocrine disorders. We do so by pioneering scientific breakthroughs, expanding access to our medicines, and working to prevent and ultimately cure disease. Novo Nordisk employs about 53,000 people in 80 countries and markets its products in around 170 countries. For more information, visit www.novonordisk.co.uk

References

¹ NovoPen 6 Quick User Guide 2020.

² NovoPen Echo Plus Quick User Guide 2020.

³ Klonoff DC, et al. Smart Pens Will Improve Insulin Therapy. Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology. 2018;12(3):551-553. doi:10.1177/1932296818759845.

⁴ Pam Brown and Jane Diggle. How to prioritise primary care diabetes services during and post COVID-19 pandemic. Available at: https://mytype1diabetes.nhs.uk/media/5100/how-to-prioritise-primary-care-diabetes-services-during-and-post-covid-19-pandemic.pdf. Last accessed: November 2022.

⁵ Adolfsson P et al. Increased Time in Range and Fewer Missed Bolus Injections After Introduction of a Smart Connected Insulin Pen. Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics. 2020; 22(10):709-718.

⁶Bergenstal RM, et al. Flash CGM is associated with reduced diabetes events and hospitalisations in insulin-treated type 2 diabetes. J Endocr Soc. 2021 Apr 1; 5(4): bvab013.

⁷NHS England. Lifechanging technology to be rolled out to all type 1 diabetes patients. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/2022/03/lifechanging-technology-to-be-rolled-out-to-all-type-1-diabetes-patients/. Last accessed: November 2022.

⁸ The University of Manchester. New study reveals positive impacts of Flash blood glucose monitoring on blood sugar and quality of life. Available at: https://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/new-study-reveals-positive-impacts-of-flash-blood-glucose-monitoring-on-blood-sugar-and-quality-of-life/. Last accessed: November 2022.

⁹ NHS. Diabetes. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/diabetes/. Last accessed: November 2022.

¹⁰ Diabetes UK. Diabetes statistics. Available at: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/professionals/position-statements-reports/statistics. Last accessed: November 2022.

¹¹ Diabetes UK. Complications of diabetes. Available at: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/complications. Last accessed: November 2022.

UK22DN00104: November - 2022

Callum Haire
+44 7795 923 159
LCMH@novonordisk.com

Helena Spooner
+44 7976 003 108
Helena.Spooner@90ten.co.uk