Glucose content in human skin: relationship with blood glucose levels

In order to acertain the dynamic relationship between the extracellular glucose in upper skin layers and blood glucose, skin suction blisters were raised in six Type 1 diabetic patients during a three-step glucose clamp. Blister glucose closely paralleled venous glucose (mean of r = 0.998). However, in three patients blister glucose was constantly lower than plasma glucose and this appeared to be related to their slower formation of skin blisters. A substantial difference in skin blister suction time was noted among patients and it was found that suction time was linearly correlated to glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) (n = 6, r = 0.865, p = 0.026). It is concluded that a non-invasive blood glucose monitoring system could be successfully based on measurement of alterations in skin glucose contents.