Tag Archives: insulin pumps

#DBlogWeek – Day Six. Time for a wild card.

May 18, 2013 – 4:25 pm

diabetes-blog-week

We’re near the end of Diabetes Blog Week! Myself and many others are posting for 7 (seven!) straight days. Haven’t heard of Diabetes Blog Week? Get the lowdown by clicking on the banner above.

We’re up to day six now. And to be honest, I am the Worst.Artist.Ever. That means it’s time for a wild card subject:

Back by popular demand, let’s revisit this prompt from last year! Tell us what your fantasy diabetes device would be? Think of your dream blood glucose checker, delivery system for insulin or other meds, magic carb counter, etc etc etc. The sky is the limit – what would you love to see?

I know I’m not going to give this subject justice today, but here’s a little of what I’d like to see:

– A device that delivers insulin and measures glucose through the same infusion set.

– It would be nice if said device would be 100 percent accurate. Always.

– And can it deliver data real-time to mobile devices and the internet?

– While we’re at it, can we make the data readable by Macs and PCs and Androids and iPhones and Samsungs, etc.?

– Let’s give it an alarm that will wake the dead in the middle of the night.

– What if it sent data to your endocrinologist on a regular basis, whether they want it or not? And then what if it held them accountable for helping you and kept them from saying stupid things, like “non-compliant diabetic”? (I’m not talking about you, Dr. P)

– Oooh… Let’s give it a feature that will taser the Diabetes Police whenever they get out of line (maybe with cupcake frosting).

– And finally, I need my Dream Diabetes Device to pick the winning Powerball numbers tonight. ‘Cause 600 Million Dollars would buy a lot of test strips.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Posted in Diabetes Blog Week | Also tagged , , , | Comments (5)

#DBlogWeek – Day Four. Accomplishments Big and Small.

May 16, 2013 – 9:16 am

diabetes-blog-week

We’re right in the middle of Diabetes Blog Week! Myself and many others are posting for 7 (seven!) straight days. This is day four’s post. Haven’t heard of Diabetes Blog Week? Get the lowdown by clicking on the banner above. Now, on to today’s subject:

We don’t always realize it, but each one of us had come a long way since diabetes first came into our life. It doesn’t matter if it’s been 5 weeks, 5 years or 50 years, you’ve done something outstanding diabetes-wise. So today let’s share the greatest accomplishment you’ve made in terms of dealing with your (or your loved one’s) diabetes. No accomplishment is too big or too small – think about self-acceptance, something you’ve mastered (pump / exercise / diet / etc.), making a tough care decision (finding a new endo or support group / choosing to use or not use a technology / etc.). (Thanks to Hilary of Rainie and Me for this topic suggestion.)

Wow, I get to say something good about myself two days in a row? That’s almost too much! Almost.

Actually, I’m having a little difficulty finding my greatest accomplishment. Not because I think I have so many to choose from. Because I don’t. I just don’t know if anything I’ve accomplished is that great. I mean, all the things I can think of seem to fall into the “gotta do it to survive” more than the “this is a great thing” category. So I think I’ll list one thing that I’m thinking of right now, and that will be “my greatest accomplishment I can think of in five minutes”. Hey, it’s my blog, I make up the rules.

I’m thinking of the time I went to my endocrinologist (the one I go to now), and told her, in my first appointment, that I was ready to go on insulin pump therapy. She didn’t know it then, but I had been thinking about pump therapy (and putting it off) for quite some time up to then. Like, years. I was finally ready to pull the trigger, and she stopped me right in my tracks. She told me that I might be a good candidate for pump therapy, but I needed to demonstrate that I had a good grasp of my BG control, counting carbs, and logging my data (including glucose readings, carb intake, and insulin dosage). And she wanted to see two consecutive A1cs at seven or below.

Well, I’m a lousy data logger when it comes to my diabetes. You could say I’m a logger lollygagger. Or something like that. But the gauntlet having been thrown, I had a decision to make: Accept the challenge, or stay on MDI (multiple daily injections). I decided to suck it up and log the data, while trying my best to manage my diabetes as well as I ever have.

In the end, the work paid off. Two consecutive A1cs at seven or below (7.0 and 6.9, if I remember correctly). Shortly after, I started on my Medtronic MiniMed Paradigm® Revel™ insulin pump. That was a little over three years ago.

Deciding to go with a pump for insulin delivery has been a life-changer for me in a number of ways. I won’t try to tell you that it’s all been fantastic. But it’s been pretty good so far. And those months where I was really keeping track of everything (even if a lot of it was on a spreadsheet– is that wrong?) really taught me about how important it is to know the math of it all. In that respect, it was an accomplishment that I’m glad to have… accomplished!
 
 
 

By StephenS | Posted in Diabetes Blog Week | Also tagged , | Comments (1)

A whole lotta stuff.

May 2, 2013 – 9:27 am

It’s no secret that all of us diabetes-folk accumulate a lot of… stuff.

I wonder… are we the hoarders of the patient world?

I mean, we have tons of things that we rely on each day. Think about it:
 
 
For blood glucose management:
– Meters
– Test Strips
– Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs)
– If you’re wearing a Dexcom™, a CGM receiver
– How about a backup meter?
– Backup test strips? You know, the ones you really hoard because your insurance company doesn’t think you need backup?
– Throw a couple of extra meters in there (at least), because you know you never get rid of the old ones the second you get a new one

For insulin delivery:
– Insulin (of course)
– Syringes
– Or Pen needles
– Or a pump
– Or all of the above
– Infusion sets for your pump
– Reservoirs for your pump

Wow, look at that list! And we’re just getting started.

For treating lows:
– Glucose tabs
– Juice
– Honey (one of my favorites)
– Nutella (not one of my favorites, but to each their own)
– That year old candy from a restaurant that’s always in the bottom of your pocket (or pocketbook)

Some additional extras:
– A Glucagon Kit
– Alcohol Wipes
– All of the stuff you carry your D-stuff in (I’m not talking about the plastic grocery bag crap I carry my stuff in… I mean the cool accessories, like you get here or here.
– Documentation—A medical bracelet or necklace, a card in your wallet, information for schools, doctors, TSA screening agents, etc.
 
 
That’s a lot of things to keep track of, just so we can live our lives with diabetes. That’s it—I live a full, happy life with diabetes (and a lot of diabetes-stuff) along for the ride.

Is there anything I’ve left out? Let me know.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Posted in Diabetes | Also tagged , , | Comments (4)

Pump Issues – Medtronic and Animas.

April 8, 2013 – 9:33 am

Just in case you didn’t know, or in case you’ve moved your e-mail or physical address and you didn’t get these, here are a couple of important notices from insulin pump makers Metronic and Animas.

– First, the Med-T notice, regarding possible loose drive support caps. The drive support cap holds the pump’s motor in place. If you have a Paradigm insulin pump, check the little disc portion on the bottom, just to the right of your light button– your down arrow. That’s the drive support cap. If that disc seems to be pushing out from the pump housing, Medtronic wants you to call them and arrange to send your pump back. Don’t worry, they’ll send you a new one.

Most important: Do not push on the drive support cap! There was an instance of someone pushing on the drive support cap, causing extra insulin to be delivered, which in turn caused severe hypoglycemia. By the way, I checked the drive support cap on my own Revel™ pump and everything is okay. Whew.

If your drive support cap is pushing out, call Medtronic customer support at 1-888-204-7616 and choose option 1. They’ll work with you to send the pump back so you can get a new one. In the notice I received, there was an additional note about making sure you don’t get your pump wet. But if you’ve had your Medtronic pump for any time at all, you already know you shouldn’t take it for a swim or put it in the wash or drop it in the toilet. Not that anyone would want to do that last thing, but you get where I’m going with this, yes?

– Second, an all-out recall of certain Animas pumps. From the U.S. Food and Drug Administration:

Animas identified a component issue affecting Animas 2020 Infusion Insulin Pumps manufactured from March 1, 2012 to November 30, 2012. The component issue may trigger the pumps to sound a false alarm or warning related to one of the following:

“Loss of prime”
“Occlusion”
“No Cartridge detected”

If you receive any of these alarms, the pump may prompt you to complete the rewind, load and prime sequence to clear this alarm. Failure to follow the pump’s safety instructions and disconnect your infusion set from your body before the “rewind, load and prime” steps can lead to unintended delivery of insulin, placing you in danger of potential serious health risks, such as hypoglycemia.

The Animas 2020 Insulin Pump also has a software limitation that will impact the ability of the pump to function past December 31, 2015. After this date, the pump will no longer deliver insulin and will generate a “Call Service Alarm.”

If this describes you and your pump, you should call the Animas Product Fulfillment Center at 877-280-2339 between the hours of 6 a.m. and 12 a.m. EDT so they can work out the details of shipping your free replacement pump. If you have technical questions, or if you want to report a concern, you should contact the Animas Customer Technical Support Center at 866-793-5253. For the full notice from the FDA, go to:
http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/Safety/ListofRecalls/ucm346650.htm

For many of us, these are our lifelines. Be safe everyone. If you have a Metronic or Animas pump, check your pump now, and if you need to, do something about it… now.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Posted in Diabetes Technology | Also tagged , , | Comments (1)

Site Change Musings, Part 2.

January 15, 2013 – 11:21 am

Time for part 2 of our discussion about infusion sites. Lots of super comments after yesterday’s post. Let’s see if we can answer a few more questions today.

If I have trouble with a site, how long do I wait to change it? That depends. Didn’t expect this to be a simple answer, did you? Mostly, how long I wait is in inverse proportion to where my blood glucose readings are. If my BG is hovering in the 200-250 mg/dL range for a while, I’ll try to do my best to get that number down. Drinking lots of water, avoiding almost all carbs, exercising, etc. If I’m still not coming down roughly 18-24 hours later, I’m moving on to a new site. But if I’m stuck in the 300+ range, I’m waiting only about 8 hours tops. I should also mention here that this kind of thing doesn’t happen very often to me, so I don’t have a lot of experience. And I hope I don’t get a lot of experience with this, if you know what I mean.

Do I have a favorite site? Yes… that’s definitely my leg. Never hurts going in. It always feels like it’s out of the way (except I sometimes forget it’s there when I take my pants off… #TMI). In fact, I’ve been known to time my site changes or switch around the order temporarily just so I can have it in my leg for long bike rides. Always seem to get a smooth delivery of insulin, maybe because there’s less fat there. If I had enough space, I think I would have it in my leg all the time. By the way, before finding the Diabetes Online Community, I had never even heard of using any space other than my midsection or my butt. Thanks DOC. My second-favorite site? On either side. It just feels comfy, though it’s much more likely that I’ll rip the thing out from there than from anywhere else.

And a final bonus question… thanks Jen for making me think of it: Will I do a site change anywhere? Only at home? Okay, two questions. I’ve only done site changes at home or in a hotel room (once without an inserter). Never at work. Never on a day trip somewhere. At work I’m just worried about getting a gusher when pulling out the old cannula. Which I suppose I could handle by waiting to pull the cannula until I get home. So maybe I’ll try that in the future. Otherwise, I don’t know. Can’t think of a reason not to do a change somewhere, other than for sanitary reasons. I think my hang-up (and it’s really my hang-up) is the whole my comfort with doing the change versus someone’s discomfort watching me do the change thing. I don’t really have a problem, but I don’t want someone else to feel weird about it. In the greater sense though, I think it would be helpful for people to see things like this that we have to do all the time, so they can be reminded that diabetes is real and it’s not a simple thing to live with.

Once again, feel free to post your answers, or any additional questions, by leaving a comment below. It’s been a great discussion so far.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Posted in Pumps | Also tagged , , , | Comments (3)