Today’s blog will look into recent medical developments for those interested in Dialysis regardless of viewpoint.

This past Sunday’s The Wall Street Journal, in a front-page article titled “ChatGPT Doctors Will See You Now” by Nidhi Subbaraman, reported that already, in California and Wisconsin, Open AI’s GPT is being used to scan patient messages and draft responses from their doctors. Such use is being rolled out as we “speak.” Here’s the kicker: ChatGPT scored better than real doctors at responding to patient queries, according to a study posted in the JAMA Internal Medicine Journal, a peer-reviewed source. The use of Artificial Intelligence is coming like a freight train. Be prepared to get onboard or get run over.

Recently, Garmin, the GPS/navigation people, rolled out the Dexcom Connect IQ app for Garmin devices. This app supports tracking glucose levels on a Garmin Smartwatch or bike computer. Remember that you need the watch and a Dexcom G6 or G7. Using the app, users should be able to glance at their watch while bike riding to ascertain their current glucose level.

In an article by Robert Hart on April 28, 2023, titled “One-Hour Diabetes Procedure Offers Fresh Hope For Ditching Insulin,” in Forbes, it was reported that a single outpatient endoscopic procedure provides glucose control, a potential improvement over drug treatment. They don’t know why it works at this time, but blind tests are encouraging. The procedure is nonsurgical and involves flexible tubes, lights, and cameras that aid doctors in seeing inside the body, and patients are discharged on the same day as the procedure. Sounds almost too good to be true. Standby.

Lastly, Fierce Healhcare in an article published in Digital Health on April 26, 2023, by Annie Burky titled “DocGo aims to bring kidney care the final mile by partnering with Fresenius Medical Care” to include remote patient monitoring, chronic care management, and urgent care services. Since 2019 DocGo has been FMC’s preferred medical transportation partner. The new service aims to “offer a solution for nephrologists to help patients truly manage their chronic conditions.” Centering around the analysis of “Big Data,” DocGo suggests it will catch trends before they become life-threatening and greatly aid patients toward the “really needing help” end of the spectrum. We’ll see. I already feel that I have more than enough of “Big Brother watching me.”