Artificial Pancreas: Current Progress and Future Outlook in the Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetes is characterised by insulin deficiency caused by autoimmune destruction of the pancreatic beta cells. The treatment of type 1 diabetes is exogenous insulin in the form of multiple daily injections or continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion. Advances in diabetes technology have been exponential in the past few decades, culminating in studies to develop an automated artificial pancreas, also known as the closed-loop system. This has recently led to a commercially available, hybrid artificial pancreas in the USA and Europe. This review article aims to provide an overview of the rationale for an artificial pancreas system and an update of the current state of artificial pancreas development. We explore the different types of artificial pancreas systems being studied, including the use of adjunctive therapy, and the use of these systems in different groups of users. In addition, we discuss the potential psychosocial impact and the challenges and limitations of implementing artificial pancreas use into clinical practice.