Phone app could diagnose diabetes within 10 minutes

The world’s first smartphone test for type 2 diabetes could see diagnosis time cut from weeks or months to less than 10 minutes, experts have said.

- REBECCA WHITTAKER

NHS trusts in Cumbria and the northeast of England are the first to give patients access to the Diabetes Health Check app, with a nationwide rollout planned for later this year. The creators of the app at diagnostics company PocDoc added that the test could save the NHS billions.

Approximately 5.2 million people in the UK have type 2 diabetes, and a further 1.3 million are thought to be undiagnosed. The new test, which combines the “gold standard” finger-prick test with a smartphone app, is set to revolutionise preventative treatment for the disease, which costs the NHS £8.8bn a year.