Optimal blood glucose regulation using single network adaptive critics

Diabetes is a serious disease during which the body´s production and use of insulin is impaired, causing glucose concentration level to increase in the bloodstream. Regulating blood glucose levels as close to normal as possible, leads to a substantial decrease in long term complications of diabetes. In this paper, an intelligent neural network online optimal feedback treatment strategy based on nonlinear optimal control theory is presented for the disease using subcutaneous treatment strategy. A simple mathematical model of the nonlinear dynamics of glucose and insulin interaction in the blood system is considered based on the Bergman´s minimal model. A glucose infusion term representing the effect of glucose intake resulting from a meal is introduced into the model equations. The efficiency of the proposed controllers is shown taking random parameters and random initial conditions in presence of physical disturbances like food intake. A comparison study with linear quadratic regulator theory brings out the advantages of the nonlinear control synthesis approach. Simulation results show that unlike linear optimal control, the proposed on-line continuous infusion strategy never leads to severe hypoglycemia problems.