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Faculty
Boris Kovatchev
Professor of Data Science by Courtesy
School of Data Science
Additional Roles
Professor
School of Medicine
Email: bpk2u@virginia.edu
Boris Kovatchev, Ph.D., is the Madge M Jones Professor of Diabetes at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, adjunct professor at the School of Data Science, and the founding director of the UVA Center for Diabetes Technology.
Kovatchev has a 30-year track record in data analysis, modeling, biosimulation, and algorithm development. He is principal investigator of several projects dedicated to diabetes data science and the development of artificial pancreas systems, including the recently completed large NIH/NIDDK International Diabetes Closed-Loop (iDCL) Trial. One of these artificial pancreas systems developed at UVA and tested by the iDCL Trial was translated to the clinical practice and is now used by over 450,000 people in the U.S. and 25 other countries. Each of these users collects a data point every 5 minutes, for life, rapidly turning the treatment of diabetes into a Data Science problem.
Most recently, this line of research introduced a new class of automated insulin delivery algorithms – the Neural-Net Artificial Pancreas – that is entirely based on machine learning methods (clinical trial NCT05876273). Kovatchev is author of over 240 peer-reviewed publications and holds 91 U.S. and international patents. For his work, he was elected Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.
Education
- Ph.D. in Mathematics, Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" in Bulgaria
- M.S. in Mathematics, Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" in Bulgaria
Selected Publications
Phillip M, Bergenstal RM, Close KL, Danne T, Garg SK, Heinemann L, Hirsch IB, Kovatchev BP, Laffel LM, Mohan V, Parkin CG, Battelino T. The Digital/Virtual Diabetes Clinic: The Future Is Now Recommendations from an International Panel on Diabetes Digital Technologies Introduction. Diabetes Technol Ther. 2021; 23:146-154. doi: 10.1089/dia.2020.0375. PMID: 32905711.
Brown SA, Kovatchev BP, Raghinaru D, et al, for the iDCL Trial Research Group. 6-month randomized multicenter trial of closed-loop control in type 1 diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2019; 381: 1707-17. PMID: 31618560.
Beck RW, Brown SA, Lum JW, and Kovatchev BP. Nonadjunctive Use of Continuous Glucose Monitoring: The End of Fingersticks? Diabetes Technol Ther. 2020; 22:67-68. PMID: 31657622.
Gautier T, Umpierrez G, Renard E, Kovatchev B. The Differential and Combined Action of Insulin Glargine and Lixisenatide on the Fasting and Postprandial Components of Glucose Control. J Diabetes Sci Technol. 2019; doi: 10.1177/1932296819891170. PMID: 31810389.
Kovatchev BP, Kollar L, Anderson SM, Barnett C, Breton MD, Carr K, Gildersleeve R, Oliveri MC, Wakeman CA, Brown SA. Evening and overnight closed-loop control versus 24/7 continuous closed-loop control for type 1 diabetes: a randomized crossover trial. Lancet Digital Health 2020; 2: e64-e73.
Kovatchev BP, Anderson SM, Raghinaru D, Kudva YC, Laffel LM, Levy C, Pinsker JE, Wadwa RP, Buckingham B, Doyle FJ 3rd, Brown SA, Church MM, Dadlani V, Dassau E, Ekhlaspour L, Forlenza GP, Isganaitis E, Lam DW, Lum J, Beck RW; iDCL Study Group. Randomized Controlled Trial of Mobile Closed-Loop Control. Diabetes Care. 2020; 43:607-615. PMID: 31937608
Kovatchev BP, Brown SA, Beck RW. Multicenter Trial of Closed-Loop Control in Type 1 Diabetes. Reply. N Engl J Med. 2020; 382:578. PMID: 32023383
Nguyen M, Han J, Spanakis EK, Kovatchev BP, Klonoff DC. A Review of Continuous Glucose Monitoring-Based Composite Metrics for Glycemic Control. Diabetes Technol Ther. 2020. doi: 10.1089/dia.2019.0434. PMID: 32069094
Fabris C, Kovatchev B. The closed-loop artificial pancreas in 2020. Artif Organs. 2020 May 8. doi: 10.1111/aor.13704. PMID: 32384582
Kovatchev B, Meng Z, Cali AMG. et al. Low Blood Glucose Index and Hypoglycaemia Risk: Insulin Glargine 300 U/mL Versus Insulin Glargine 100 U/mL in Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Ther 11, 1293–1302 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13300-020-00808-y. PMID: 32304086
Fabris C, Heinemann L, Beck RW, Cobelli C, Kovatchev B. Estimation of Hemoglobin A1c From Continuous Glucose Monitoring Data in Individuals With Type 1 Diabetes: Is Time in Range All We Need? Diabetes Technol Ther. 2020 doi: 10.1089/dia.2020.0236. PMID: 32459124.
Brown SA, Beck RW, Raghinaru D, Buckingham BA, Laffel LM, Wadwa RP, Kudva YC, Levy CJ, Pinsker JE, Dassau E, Doyle FJ 3rd, Ambler-Osborn L, Anderson SM, Church MM, Ekhlaspour L, Forlenza GP, Levister C, Simha V, Breton MD, Kollman C, Lum JW, Kovatchev BP. Glycemic Outcomes of Use of CLC Versus PLGS in Type 1 Diabetes: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Diabetes Care. 2020; 43:1822-1828. PMID: 32471910; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7372060.