Continuous glucose monitoring: current use and future directions.

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is an emerging technology that provides a continuous measure of interstitial glucose levels. In addition to providing a more complete pattern of glucose excursions, CGMs utilize real-time alarms for thresholds and predictions of hypo- and hyperglycemia, as well as rate of change alarms for rapid glycemic excursions. CGM users have been able to improve glycemic control without increasing their risk of hypoglycemia. Sensor accuracy, reliability, and wearability are important challenges to CGM success and are critical to the development of an artificial pancreas (or closed-loop system).