FDA approves Abbott’s Freestyle Libre Pro system

Abbott announced this week that its FreeStyle Libre Pro system, a groundbreaking continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system designed for patients with diabetes, has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The Freestyle Libre Pro system was developed to ensure that health care professionals are better able to offer diabetes management to patients. The system presents a visual snapshot of glucose data to health care professionals. The snapshot is also known as an Ambulatory Glucose Profile (AGP) and provides an analysis of glucose levels as well as patterns and trends.

"My patients are often out of range, due to inconsistent self-monitoring and insufficient data from traditional glucose meters that are unable to provide a full view of their glucose levels," Dr. Eugene E. Wright, Jr., from Duke Southern Regional Area Health Education Center, said.

The system will help doctors effectively treat patients with diabetes as it pertains to decisions around insulin, nutrition and medication, Dr. Wright said.

"FreeStyle Libre Pro transforms how doctors assess their patients' diabetes," Abbott SVP of Diabetes Care Jared Watkin said. "This novel technology provides a solution to the ongoing challenge of the need for complete and dependable glucose data. This data is imperative for not only the doctor, but also for the patient to help them achieve optimal health."