New glucose testing device transforms monitoring for diabetics

The medical device world is flat… and it goes straight through Memphis

The ubiquitous urine test, most often used by employers to protect against employee drug use, is not typically something to be envied. But for a diabetic who must prick fingers throughout the day to monitor their own sugar level, a urine test is a far more comfortable solution. Nearly all would embrace a less invasive alternative to monitor their own medical condition. Enter Carlos Bernal and GlucosAlarm, a patent pending glucose sensor designed for diabetic patients that measures sugar levels in their urine. The device is placed inside the toilet and is activated through a patient’s smart phone application, with the device sending the results to the smart phone. The device is also able to call the ER or notify a medical professional if needed.

Carlos Bernal hails from Mexico and is CTO of his startup, Eido Innova, which is one of four selected for the 2015 ZeroTo510 Memphis Medical Device Accelerator program here in Memphis. He came to Memphis with his wife and CEO, Nancy Guerra, so there are no jokes about who controls the purse strings. Nancy runs the company so Carlos can spread the good news about Glucose Alarm around the world and bring home some major awards.

GlucosAlarm was nominated for the competition Global and Innovation through Science and Technology organized by the Department of State of the United States. A record 792 applicants from 74 countries applied, and Glucosalarm was ranked among the top 30 finalists which were brought together in Africa to compete in the final round of the competition. Carlos and other finalists received two days of training with mentors before preparing for their final pitch on July 26, 2015 to determine the winner. Carlos had to miss a little ZeroTo510 to travel to Africa, demonstrate GlucosAlarm, win the Global Competition, collect another $25,000 in funding, and meet President Obama and other world leaders, but he think it may have been worth it.

Carlos attended the University of Houston studying Computer Engineering and receiving his Masters in Network Communications. Nancy previously founded Descúbrete Medspa, where as CEO she increased yearly revenue to over 2 million pesos. She has also taught high school and college level Spanish. Carlos said that they, “Chose the ZeroTo510 accelerator program based on their own comprehensive market research of all accelerators in the U.S. and Mexico.” After a few days they decided that with their medical device, there is no other place they should be.

This story is part of a series reviewing the ZeroTo510 and Start Co. Demo Day on August 13. The ZeroTo510 Medical Device Accelerator is a first-in-kind entrepreneurial accelerator program that focuses on leveraging key regional strengths of the Memphis area: biomedical research and medical device manufacturing. The goal of ZeroTo510 is to help medical device startups navigate the startup process, refine their business models and complete the Food and Drug Administration’s 510(k) premarket notification filing.