Scientists have developed a skin patch that can deliver drugs to regulate blood sugar in diabetics for days at a time. This would put an end to the need for painful daily injections and needle pricks. <br/><br/>Researchers at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering in the US have devised a biochemical formula of mineralised compounds that interacts in the bloodstream to regulate blood sugar for days at a time.<br/><br/>In a study performed with mice, researchers showed that the patch of dissolvable microneedles can respond to blood chemistry to manage glucose automatically.<br/><br/>Global incidence of all types of diabetes is about 285 million people, of which 90 per cent have type 2 diabetes. Many require insulin therapy that is usually given by injection just under the skin. Insulin therapy is not managed well in half of all cases.<br/><br/>The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.