Insulin Pumps: Feautures
To find an insulin pump that’ll match you best, it’s a good idea to do more than search a sales brochure, call the first pump sales representative you’re described, or blindly purchase the pump your buddy or health care service provider uses. Given that many people stick with an insulin pump for the length of its warranty (about 4 or five years), it’s best to treat the devices as lasting, big-ticket products. Not only that, but each pump has its own set of advantages and drawbacks. That’s why it’s crucial to take a look at the total package when comparing devices.
However remember: It is unlikely that you will discover one pump that is perfectly fit to all your wants and needs. Similar to picking a house or a car, choosing a pump requires you to take some of the bad with (hopefully) a great deal of the great. The secret is to discover a device that satisfies most of your important needs, with minimal downsides on features that relate to you.
Prior to you can find a pump that satisfies your most important requirements, you have to know what you’re searching for. There are a number of crucial features that almost everybody should think about when choosing a pump. These include:
Contents
Tubing
There are two methods to use a pump: straight on the skin or with the device linked to your skin through versatile tubing. Devices with tubing to link the pump to the body usually use full programming on the pump itself, a choice of infusion set types, and the chance to disconnect from the pump at the infusion site. The tangle element of the tubing causes some poeople to prefer pods or patch pumps. A “patch” or “pod” pump stays stuck to you up until you alter it for a brand-new one.
The OmniPod, the only programmable tubing-free pump on the marketplace, provides numerous benefits: It’s discreet (small adequate to hide under clothing), disposable, inserts its own cannula automatically, and removes the capturing and pulling troubles connected with tubing. Since there’s no tube to fill, the pod does not waste as much insulin. And since it remains on the body continuously, the pod does not cause gaps in insulin delivery due to disconnection. Another bonus offer: There’s no unwanted motion of insulin when the pump is raised or decreased — something that can happen when utilizing tubing, giving you a small amount of extra insulin when the pump is raised and a bit less than intended when it’s decreased. On the downside, use of a pod-type pump requires a separate push-button control for all programming, and any skin- or insertion site — related problems need total pod replacement.
Also read: How to Choose The Best Insulin Pump?
Reservoir Volume
A lot of pump users take advantage of a device that holds enough insulin for at least three days, plus an additional 20 to 30 systems for priming the tubing. If you use less than 60 units (basal and bolus overall, or overall everyday dosage) every day, tank size isn’t a problem — reservoirs need to be just partly filled. But if you’re insulin resistant or require more than 60 units each day, look for a pump that holds a minimum of 300 units. One pump, Tandem’s T: flex, holds up to 480 systems.
Some advantages of using an insulin pump instead of insulin injections are:
• Utilizing an insulin pump means eliminating individual insulin injections
• Insulin pumps provide insulin more accurately than injections
• Insulin pumps frequently enhance A1C
• Using an insulin pump usually leads to fewer large swings in your blood sugar levels
• Utilizing an insulin pump makes delivery of bolus insulin much easier
• Insulin pumps allow you to be versatile about when and what you eat
• Utilizing an insulin pump decreases severe low blood glucose episodes
• Utilizing an insulin pump eliminates unpredictable effects of intermediate- or long-acting insulin
• Insulin pumps enable you to work out without needing to eat large amounts of carbohydrate
Out-Of-Pocket Cost
Although health insurance generally covers the cost of insulin pumps and disposable supplies, there are frequently copays and deductibles that need to be satisfied. The up-front cost of the OmniPod is around 80 to 90 percent less than that of a standard tubed pump, but the long-term costs can be higher offered the higher price for the non reusable pods. And bear in mind: Some health plans (including Medicare) do not cover the OmniPod. If you’re seeking to save out of pocket, take a look at the Roche Accu-Chek Combo, which costs about 20 percent less than other tubed pumps.
Flexible Dosing
An insulin-to-carb ratio will inform you how many grams of carbohydrate a single unit of insulin covers. The ability to calculate bolus doses using insulin-to-carb ratios in tenths of a gram is essential for individuals who require large doses (where each system of insulin covers 6 grams of carbohydrate or fewer). For example, 1 unit of insulin for each 3.5 grams of carbohydrate may be needed if 1 unit for each 3 grams is excessive however 1 unit for every single 4 grams is too little. If that’s you, take a look at pumps by Tandem, Medtronic, and Roche. Tandem also allows bolus doses as high as 60 systems with its T: flex model.
Some pumps enable users to define a time representing insulin period — the length of time after bolus delivery insulin remains active and available in the body. Insulin period affects computations of insulin on board, an expensive pump term for the insulin still active in the body after a bolus delivery. Tandem pumps permit insulin period to be set to the nearby minute while Medtronic pumps allow duration to be set in 30-minute increments.
Tandem pumps also permit the best versatility when setting temporary basal rates, with boosts of up to 250 percent for as much as 72 hours. They also permit users to establish secondary programs (called “profiles”) with special basal and bolus settings combined into the very same program. Doing so can assist users customize insulin doses during times when they’re more or less sensitive to insulin — state, when they’re sick, stressed out, or exercising more or less than typical. Other pumps enable secondary basal programs, however not secondary bolus programs.
Small Doses
People who are very conscious insulin and need dosages of less than 1 system may value pumps that enable basal and bolus dosing in the tiniest possible increments. Tandem pumps provide basal dosing in increments of 0.001 units and boluses in increments of 0.01 systems. Both Animas and Medtronic provide pumps with basal dosing in 0.025-unit increments, and Medtronic pumps permit boluses in increments of 0.025 systems.
Watertight Exterior
If you invest a reasonable quantity of time in or around water, you might wish to consider a pump that will not be quickly damaged by splashing or submersion. Animas’ pumps are really leak-proof — and called for as such. The OmniPod and Accu-Chek Combo are watertight, however their remote controls are not. Tandem pumps are semi-watertight, while Medtronic pumps are not leak-proof.
CGM Integration
Some pumps get rid of the have to bring a separate CGM receiver by showing sensing unit information on the pump screen. The MiniMed 530G has a built-in Medtronic CGM screen while the Animas Vibe and Tandem T: slim G4 both have Dexcom CGM combination.
Meter Interaction
Some pumps accept data transmissions from blood sugar meters. This gets rid of the have to manually go into blood sugar worths into a pump’s bolus calculator and ensures that the correct reading is always gone into. Medtronic pumps link with Ascensia Diabetes Care’s Contour Next Link meter. A handful of pumps have actually meters incorporated into the push-button controls that program the pump: The Animas Ping (but not the Animas Vibe) has a OneTouch Ping meter remote, the Accu-Chek Combo’s remote has an Accu-Chek Combo meter, and the OmniPod has a built-in FreeStyle meter.
Insulin Suspension
A pump’s ability to take readings from a CGM and immediately adjust insulin delivery is thought about the next great action in diabetes management. Although still in its infancy, the first business step towards a synthetic pancreas exists in Medtronic’s MiniMed 530G pump. This pump instantly reacts to low glucose by suspending basal insulin delivery for up to two hours when low glucose alarms are neglected. Although not intended as a treatment for hypoglycemia (rapid-acting carb will raise the blood glucose much faster), this feature can offer an additional level of safety and security for those who are prone to severe lows.
