Results of a study presented Monday in Rome during the European Association for the Study of Diabetes annual conference showed that type 1 diabetes patients now have a better way to monitor their disease.

More exactly, those using a device worn under the skin to monitor their blood sugar concentration manage to control their disease more efficiently than if pricking a finger for blood and testing glucose levels, the usual method for handling this type of diabetes.

The study involved 322 patients ages 8 to 72 who were assigned to use either a continuous glucose monitor or standard blood sugar monitoring. The participants were followed for 26 weeks.

At the end of the follow-up period, the study showed for patients 25 years of age and older, the use of the device had significant improvements in blood sugar control. For those younger than 25, the difference between the groups was not significant, primarily because the younger patients were less likely to use the equipment continuously.

“Getting better control of diabetes using continuous glucose monitoring is almost certainly likely to equate with fewer long-term complications. This will have substantial long-term benefit on quality of life and reduce health care costs,” lead researcher Dr. Roy W. Beck, from the Jaeb Center for Health Research in Tampa, Fla., said.

The study, funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, was published in the Sept. 8 online edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.