VIDEO: The tiny device that transformed the life of diabetes sufferer Vinny

They had no idea that he had the condition until he became poorly while on holiday in Wales and had to be airlifted to hospital.

His mother Sam, who lives in Ashton, said: “He looked a bit off-colour. He had lost a bit of weight but he had grown too.

“This particular night he started being sick at 8pm.

“We didn’t think much about it, we just thought he had a bit of a tummy bug.

“By 6am the following morning he looked like he was going to die – that’s the only way I can describe it.

“His heart rate was really high. The paramedic thought he was having a heart attack because his heart rate was 168.

“He brought the helimed to take him to Bangor. He was very sick.”

Doctors discovered Vinny, who was then 14, had diabetes and was in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a dangerous complication where the body starts running out of insulin which can lead to a coma or even death.

He also had cerebral edema, an excess accumulation of fluid on the brain.

Vinny spent several days on the high dependency unit and was transferred back to Wigan.

His diabetes diagnosis – and the whole experience – was totally unexpected by Sam and her husband Mark.

She said: “It came as a complete and utter shock to us because you don’t think about your child getting something like diabetes.

“We knew nothing about it when he was diagnosed.”

Vinny has a form of type-one diabetes which means he has no hypo-awareness, so does not know if his blood glucose levels are too high or too low.

He is subject to hypoglycaemic attacks as his glucose levels constantly go high and low and show no early warning signs.

That made it even harder for Vinny and his family to adjust to the diagnosis.

Mrs Patterson said: “He has them in his sleep. His blood can slip dangerously low and he doesn’t wake up. That’s really frightening.

“It was a case of checking on him through the night, doing finger sticks to check his blood glucose levels.

“After it happened it got to the point where I don’t think we slept for nearly 12 months.

“It affected Vinny because he wasn’t going to sleep because he was worried he would fall unconscious.

“He stopped going out with his friends and it knocked his confidence completely.”

Fortunately the family heard about the Dexcom G5 Mobile, a small wearable device that tracks glucose levels continuously.

They spoke to Vinny’s consultant and he was given the device, which provides alerts to his mobile phone and watch, as well as his parents’ phones, if his glucose levels are too high or too low.

Mrs Patterson said: “As a teenager, he can have a quick look at his watch and know where he’s up to.

“I’m not on his back all the time asking him.

“It’s a little device he wears on his stomach and it’s the most amazing bit of kit.

“It’s simply absolutely brilliant.

“It’s given him his confidence back and it’s given me, as a mum, confidence back.

“I will drop Vinny off at a trampoline park with his friends and I will do my shopping and all the time I can see what his levels are.”

Because of the alerts, Mrs Patterson has even been able to call Cansfield High School, where Vinny is a pupil, if she has any concerns about his glucose levels.

He has an insulin pump which can be adjusted as needed.

Life has improved for the whole family, as they can sleep easy knowing the device will alert them if there is a problem with Vinny’s glucose levels.

And Mrs Patterson believes it has transformed life for Vinny, who is now 15.

She said: “He is so confident now. He is back out with his mates, he’s going trampolining, he’s doing all the things every teenage lad should be doing.“It’s one less worry for him. It’s got his back.

“His school has accepted it. They are really happy with him using Dexcom and have even said he can have it in his exams because it’s a part of his daily life now.”

The Dexcom has made such a difference to Vinny that he was able to join Gavin Griffiths, who is running 25 marathons in a month to raise awareness of type-one diabetes.

Vinny ran a mile with Gavin during his 18th marathon, which was in Liverpool, and they spoke about the condition.

Gavin aimed to raise £10,000 for the League Of DiAthletes programme, which promotes diabetes education.