Nine-year-old, father use crowdfunding to launch medical backpack

With the help of his father, a 9-year-old boy with type 1 diabetes has developed a backpack designed for people with medical conditions who need to carry supplies with them at all times, according to a press release.

"I didn't want to be treated differently, and I couldn't find anything that didn't look like a purse, so I decided to create something,” Kyle Houlihan, said in a press release.

The VitalPak is a backpack with a customizable, snap-in essentials kit that can easily be added or removed. While the pack was designed to discretely carry diabetes treatments, the pack can also be configured as a first aid kit or to hold supplies for people with asthma or allergies.

The product has been in development for  years since Kyle was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2010. One year later, Kyle was named the Wisconsin Youth Ambassador for the American Diabetes Association and became the face of diabetes at events around the state.

To get the product to market, Kyle and his father turned to IndieGogo, an international crowd-funding organization. The two hope to raise $40,000 by April 17. Those who contribute $65 or more will be eligible to receive the first VitalPaks to be manufactured.

For more information on VitalPak, visit www.myvitalpak.com; to donate to the funding project, visit www.indiegogo.com/projects/vitalpak-medical-backpack.