Diabetes treatment could soon be revolutionized by a skin patch being developed in South Korea. It tests glucose levels in sweat instead of blood and delivers drugs painlessly through micro needles that are too short to touch nerves.

South Korean diabetic Kang Samdeok tests her blood sugar levels to determine whether she needs an injection of insulin.

"It's not easy to do. I only do it to live. I and other diabetic patients would like an easier way, instead of an injection," Samdeok said.

The answer might be this high tech patch, which could enable diabetics to monitor blood sugar levels and receive insulin painlessly. Instead of blood the patch checks perspiration for glucose and PH levels sending the information to a smartphone app.

If the application judges that the patient needs medication then micro needles embedded within the patch deliver the drug.

The device is being developed at Seoul National University by a team of researchers led by Professor Kim Dae-hyeong.

"There's no bleeding, no pain, no stress. The patch allows the drug to enter painlessly and automatically based on the blood sugar measured on the skin," Professor Kim Dae-hyeong said.

Trials on mice and two men have been successful and more prototypes are being made to test under more challenging conditions. The electrical heart of the patch is made from tiny amounts of gold and ultra tough graphene.

It's essentially a semi conductor so factories already exist capable of mass production.

"This is a very conventional process because this is a small portion of a very conventional semi conductor fabrication process," said Lee Hyun-jae, Seoul National University.

The World Health Organization estimates the number of people living with diabetes has risen fourfold over the past 25 years. If the prototype proves successful the patch could be commercially available within a few years.

It's expected to cost about the same as a conventional diagnostics and treatment kit, which would be good news for millions of diabetics worldwide.