Insulin Pump Therapy | Is Insulin Pump Therapy Right for You?


		Important safety information \| Prescribing Information

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Should you consider an insulin pump?

Are you a candidate for an insulin pump?

If you take insulin, have frequent episodes of high or low blood glucose, and are tired of the routine of multiple daily injections, you could be a candidate for an insulin pump. Any decision about using an insulin pump must be made with the help of your doctor.

What responsibilities come with an insulin pump?

While you will be freed from multiple daily injections, using an insulin pump means you must pay close attention to the responsibilities of managing your diabetes. You must be willing to:

Check your blood glucose levels frequently (at least 4 times daily, always before each meal) in order to know how much insulin you need to keep your blood glucose under control
Use blood glucose results to adjust your insulin dosages to make sure you are covering the food you are about to eat and to adjust your blood glucose if it is high or low
Learn to count carbohydrates and adjust your insulin doses to match food intake
Understand which foods can make your blood glucose very high or take much longer to affect you so you can give different amounts of insulin when you eat those foods
Use a correction or sensitivity calculation to make immediate adjustments
Respond quickly when your blood glucose levels show hyperglycemia and/or if there are ketones in your urine
Regularly monitor your pump and the insertion site for any problems

Why are more people choosing to use insulin pumps?

While as yet there is no cure for diabetes, medical treatment has come a long way in making it easier for people to live better with it. Today, there are many new devices, such as the insulin pump, and new types of insulin that can help you avoid the rigid rules and loss of freedom that used to be associated with diabetes. You still have to watch your diet and get regular exercise. But if you are an active person with diabetes, an insulin pump may be a good tool for living a more active and flexible life. The pump is considered to be a safe and reliable way to deliver insulin and to give people with diabetes more freedom in their daily activities.

Why do doctors recommend insulin pump therapy?

Insulin pumps are recommended to help people better manage their blood glucose and reduce their risk of long-term diabetes complications. A 10-year study involving more than 1000 people with type 1 diabetes completed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 1993 showed that this type of intensive insulin therapy can effectively reduce the risk of complications. Called the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), this study proved that intensive insulin therapy—the kind of therapy you're on when you use an insulin pump—could help reduce many complications common to people with diabetes. The study showed that intensive insulin therapy1:

Reduced complications leading to blindness by 76%
Reduced complications leading to amputation by 60%
Reduced kidney disease by 54%

Why were diabetes complications reduced so much?

The DCCT showed reduced diabetes complications because intensive insulin therapy helps keep blood glucose under "tight control." This means giving insulin more often to keep blood glucose levels as close as possible to normal throughout the day and night. Insulin therapy with a pump comes close to imitating the pattern of how insulin is released in a person without diabetes.

What is a normal pattern of insulin release?

Insulin is needed to get the glucose out of the blood and into the body's cells, where it is used for energy. Normally, an organ called the pancreas produces small amounts of insulin (called basal insulin) continuously throughout the day. The amount of insulin increases as your need for energy changes. For example, in the early morning hours, the pancreas will make more insulin as your body completes its rest cycle in preparation for a new day. The pancreas also releases larger bursts of insulin (bolus insulin) when a meal or snack is eaten. Some of the food you eat is broken down into glucose, which travels in your blood to your cells.

How does the insulin pump compare with normal insulin action?

Before the insulin pump, the only way to imitate the normal use of insulin was by taking many injections each day, often combining long- and short-acting kinds of insulin. Pumps work similarly to the pancreas, allowing a person with diabetes to get insulin delivered automatically or whenever it's needed. This provides a convenient alternative for people with diabetes who have a multiple daily injection.

What are insulin pumps?

Learn about the advantages of pumps and how they work

1. The Diabetes Control and Complication Trial Research Group. The effect of intensive treatment of diabetes on the development and progression of long-term complications in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. N Engl J Med. 1993;329:977-986.