Abstract:

Type 1 diabetes arises from autoimmune destruction of beta cells in the pancreas. The beta cells are responsible for insulin production. After exceeding the destruction level of 80% of beta cells population the patient suffers form a high deficit of insulin which results in permanent hyperglycemia. This is usually the time when the disease is diagnosed. Morbidity mainly takes place among children and young adults i.e. under 30. The autoimmune process of destruction does not stop intrinsically and the beta cells do not regenerate. Lack of treatment leads to death and the treatment must be carried out until the end of the patient's life. However, if the treatment is properly conducted, the patient's life does not differ significantly from the life of a healthy person. Modern technology has made possible to formulate the term “healthy person with type 1 diabetes”. It is therefore advisable to take up any effort aimed at developing such technology. This paper deals with mobile applications intended for supporting type 1 diabetes therapy. The authors focus on the modules of the applications that can be used by patients for self-learning about their disease. This aspect is of great importance because the patient’s knowledge is a key part of successful therapy. Taking into account that this disease appears at a young age and the fact that young people use smartphones intensively, it becomes natural to use these devices for lifelong learning of patients. Presented paper provides an overview of most popular modern mobile applications intended for supporting type 1 diabetes in everyday therapy. Major functionality of them is described and then the aspect under interest is elucidated. The paper answers questions whether and how the educational function is realized, what didactic methods are used and what is the users response to the educational modules of the applications.

Keywords:

Type 1 diabetes, mobile applications, self-learning.