Status: 02/14/2023 5:25 p.m
Many diabetics use digital measuring devices that are connected to their cell phones. If the blood sugar is low, an alarm is triggered. But with certain Such warnings may not appear on Android devices after an update.
Millions of diabetes patients around the world control their blood sugar levels digitally. A small sensor attached to the body constantly measures the glucose value and sends it to an app on the smartphone. This allows patients to conveniently read their readings and receive alerts when blood glucose levels rise or fall dangerously.
Problems with Android version 13
If there are no such warnings, however, this could be dangerous in certain situations. For example on the road. According to research by BR this could happen with certain smartphones. The background is a problem with version 13 of Google’s Android mobile operating system, which was released in August 2022.
In order for the smartphone to be able to issue a warning in an emergency, the Bluetooth connection between the sensor and the phone must work reliably. But users who have installed Android 13 keep reporting problems with it.
Problem has existed for months
“The connection keeps dropping,” wrote an anonymous user in Google’s own support forum in August last year, a few days after the update was released. “This is a serious problem for diabetics,” writes another. At the time, a Google employee promised that the problem would be taken care of.
But even more than five months later, users are still reporting problems with the Bluetooth connection between the smartphone and the sensor. “Please fix this asap, it could be a matter of life and death,” someone wrote in early February. “I only realized my blood sugar was low when I was already having dangerous symptoms,” wrote another in mid-January.
Severe hypoglycaemia as a possible consequence
The diabetologist and President of the International Diabetes Federation Peter Schwarz from the University Hospital Dresden has been working with glucose measurement systems for many years. “I find it fatal that the patient can get into a situation where he is potentially endangered by an update of an operating system,” he says BR-Interview.
He does not expect life-threatening situations to arise from faulty Bluetooth connections. The patients are trained to pay attention to symptoms and, if in doubt, to measure their blood sugar level with a prick in their finger. But it could be that patients who don’t feel any symptoms get severe hypoglycaemia. “In individual cases, this can also be dangerous for the patient.”
Google refers to software update
“We are aware of the problem that has affected Bluetooth connectivity for some users and published a solution in December 2022,” writes Google when asked by BR. What is meant is a software update that users can install.
However, experience has shown that it takes a while before all manufacturers of Android smartphones make the relevant updates available for their devices and all users actually install them. This may explain the reports on the Internet, in which the connection problems are described to this day. Other questions, such as how many people are affected and whether Google has informed diabetics or the manufacturers of the glucose sensors, remain unanswered.
Manufacturer: Disable updates
The two leading sensor manufacturers, Abbott and Dexcom, recommend users to disable automatic operating system updates on their smartphones and only install new versions if they have been checked by the manufacturers. Abbott shares after the BR-Request also states that they have identified the problem and are working to fix it as soon as possible. Customers have been informed. Dexcom states that its devices are not compatible with Android 13, the specific problem is not known.
The Federal Office for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) has received 39 reports on sensors from two manufacturers that could be related to the problem. The BfArM reports that the investigations are ongoing. One does not assume a systematic product shortage of the sensors.
Similar Bluetooth problems have also occurred with Apple products in the past. The sensor manufacturer Abbott published last year an “urgent safety information” for patients who use its sensors with Apple devices. Apple did not comment on this when asked.
responsibility unclear
“It’s not that easy to say who is responsible for the problem,” says diabetologist Schwarz. Many parties are involved: sensor manufacturers, smartphone manufacturers, operating system providers, authorities, doctors and patients. “I think that comprehensive cooperation would be important here in order to identify the problem and solve it quickly.”
The technology itself is a blessing for patients, says Schwarz. But only if it works really well. “I think the problem needs to be solved and patients and the medical community need to be made aware of it.”
Involve patients in product development
The deputy national chairman of the German Diabetics Association, Benjamin Böhm, calls for device and software manufacturers to involve patients in product development. “So that errors and problems that can affect treatment are identified early and patients are informed.” When such mistakes happen, it is important that they are taken seriously and fixed quickly.