ReviewDiabetologia2026
Insulin pens and the digital ecosystem.
Review in Diabetologia, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
25 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Insulin has been used for over a century for the treatment of diabetes and, since the mid-1980s, there has been a rapid development of insulin administration tools. Over the last decade, several medical products used for diabetes management have been connected to a digital ecosystem. This connectivity includes sophisticated monitoring of not only glucose levels but also of insulin delivery (type, dose, time of dosing). It facilitates interactions between people with diabetes, various diabetes technology devices and healthcare professionals. This white paper aims to discuss and categorise different types of insulin pens, connected insulin pens and caps, as well as smart insulin pen systems (SPSs) that are available on the market. Connected pens capture data to provide information about the details of the insulin applied. SPSs are paired with a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system and, by means of integrated algorithms, can provide individualised dose calculation based on a variety of factors. These SPSs can also recommend insulin doses based on current and projected glucose and insulin data; this feature requires a connection to a CGM system. Yet what are the clinical advantages of SPSs? What added value does this system bring to individuals living with diabetes and their healthcare providers? In a narrative review, we discuss the current regulatory pathways and market environment as well as the influencing factors of connected insulin pens vs SPSs. We aim to provide a rationale and justification for this categorisation based on (smart) design aspects, regulatory considerations and clinical outcomes. This review concludes that while standard insulin pens remain a safe and commonly offered option, connected insulin pens and SPSs are likely to show improvement in glycaemic management, treatment adherence and patient satisfaction, and represent a significant advancement in diabetes care. However, further research including high-quality clinical and health economic studies will be vital in substantiating the value of both connected insulin pens and SPSs and driving broader acceptance among payers and healthcare systems.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.