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Archived Thread - Read Only - No New Posts Allowed
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Complete Thread For This Topic (Message Tree)
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1. RE: pumps
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mdf100
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You'll be lucky! The NHS give them out like Willy Wonka's golden tickets...I got told that having exhausted all other options the pump is the only way I am going to get good control, but my PCT is in debt so no chance. They are not cheap to buy privately (running costs are staggering!).
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4. RE: pumps
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mdf100
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Hey - cop out answer I know, but it depends on the person. I'd really love to go on a pump but I can't right now  I have heard it can be invasive at first, but once you get used it it they can be a dream. Like most things in life, what you put in is what you get out I suppose... However they simply do not work for some folks. Your friend could always try it and if they don't like it swap back.
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5. RE: pumps
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amycarlson
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We just put my kiddo on a pump a bit ago, so I don't have the largest amount of experience yet...but I can tell you that she's gone from being extremely volatile in her BG readings to within range ALMOST all of the time in the span of the last week and a half. Absolutely amazing! She doesn't seem to be having any issues w/ the infusion set or anything, either. She says it's easy to sleep with, and it bothers her a lot less than multiple injections over the course of the day. So far, so good. Good luck with your decision! There are advantages to both ways, right?! 
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6. RE: pumps
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micksmixxx
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My apologies to you Carolyn. I really can't explain how I missed your message.I've been using an insulin pump (Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin Infusion (CSII)) system since November 1998, and to be frank with you I'd be extremely reluctant to go back to multiple daily injections. In fact, shortly after Lantus insulin was introduced here, in the UK, we (my consultant endocrinologist and I) did try as Lantus promised to be something special. Alas, it turned out to not be as good as we were hoping ... or, for me, it didn't turn out to be as good as expected. <grin> I've added some urls here for you to take a look at, some, of which, I think you'll find useful. Having said that, you may find that it's an uphill struggle to actually get your doctor/diabetologist/endocrinologist to back you for pump therapy. Basically, what's happening is that cost is being taken into account far more than I believe it should be. 'They' (Primary Care Trusts/NHS) seem to be viewing things in the short term. The cost of a pump, and the ongoing replacement set changes (insulin reservoirs, cannualas, etc.) is quite expensive, but, if you weight this up against the cost of hospital admissions (for those whose diabetes gets seriously out of control), I firmly believe that they're saving money. Luckily for me, my endocrinologist agreed with that viewpoint. As a 30-second summary of NICE (National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence) guidelines, you will only be considered for pump therapy if multiple daily injections is not working well for you. i.e., if your HbA1c levels are consistently over 7.5% About 5 years ago, I spoke to my then local MP with regards to getting clarification from the House of Commons that any type 1 diabetic that wished to utilise a pump system would be granted this wish. He promised me that he would raise the issue in the House, but he never got back to me to let me know what had happened. Anyway, take a look at these sites, and if you feel that I may be able to help you further, don't hesitate to contact me, either via this forum or by sending me an email directly. http://www.insulin-pumpers.org/ - You can choose here to view the Canadian or the UK site if you wish
http://www.insulin-pumpers.org.uk/mypump/ - This give information on how people have found using a pump
http://www.medicinenet.com/insulin_pump_...
http://www.insulin-pump.info/
http://www.insulin-pumpers.org/faq/novop... - A .pdf document on whether an insulin pump is right for you
http://www.diabetes.nhs.uk/downloads/NIC... - A summary of relevant guidelines
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsands...
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Healthcare/Natio...
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7. RE: pumps
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mdf100
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Guys,The NICE guidelines are under review and will be slackened within a month or two. In short it will be easier to get a pump if you want / need one. Other news - I have actually been accepted for a pump! I'm over the moon. I start on April 7th and I can't wait. I have had HBA1c's over 10+ for 7 years now (been down as low as 8 once or twice). Mark
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9. RE: pumps
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micksmixxx
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Come on then Mark (mdf100),Don't keep me in suspenders ... oops! I meant suspense. You've, hopefully, been using a pump for almost a month now. How have you found it? Are you getting better blood sugar control by using it? I've been trialling a CGMS (Continuous Glucose Monitoring System) for the past few months. It's another little implanted device, but this one 'talks' to my pump to let it know what my blood sugar level is doing ... whether it's going up, falling, or staying static. There are just two of us using this system at the moment in the area where I live as it's ridiculously expensive. (It works out at approximately £56 every three days for the sensors ... that's the bit that's fixed into your institial tissues.) To be frank (if you don't mind me changing my name for a second), I'm a little disappointed with it. The results it gives often do not correlate with what a fingerprick test reveals. Unfortunately, by the time it was indicating I was going hypo I was already unconscious, even though I'd set it to alarm at the 6 mmol/l (108 mg/dL) level. In that respect, I'm afraid it didn't prove very useful for me. Hopefully, the other participant has been able to get better results. Be well, sir. Lots of Love and Light. Mick
x x x x
x x x
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12. RE: pumps
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mdf100
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Mick,Apologies I have been meaning to get back onto this forum for a while now but life keeps getting in the way... So my new pump. Its a marvel! I must say that I feel sooooooooo much better from it, even in this short time. Plus my HBA1c dropped 2 full percentage points within the first 4 weeks! I had been getting so depressed about how my condition had been going over the last 5+ years but hopefully this little gadget will let me turn the corner. It seems to be, I just need to keep this up. For me a big boost has been about the instant control, not having lots of long acting insulin in my system. The confidence boost it has given me is simply phenominal. I don't have panic attacks on busses or trains anymore. I can go to the cinema without that annoying blue/green glow from the fingerstick meter. Etc, Etc. I am sure there are people in this group that know what I mean. In short, and I know how sensationalist this sounds so I apologise in advance - but I really mean this - I feel like I am getting my life back at long last! Not my pre-diabetic life, I can't remember that far back, but the control I used to have. I'm not sure if it is the pump itself, or not being on the long acting insulins (I do not like these newer agressive types like Lantus and Levimir). Whatever it is I'm just glad. Anyway enough pontificating. Sugar Control. The peaks and troughs have stopped, I no longer bounce from 7 mmol/l to 25+mmol/l (and vice versa) for no reason. I don't even peak that much after meals anymore - plus the food peak goes after 2 hours as it should. My Blood Gloucose profile over the day is much much flatter. I just need to start bringing it down into an acceptable range. So far I have managed to get it down to 10mmol/l pretty constantly. I know that probably sounds horrendous to most but believe me this is such an improvement for me. Plus I know I can get better with it. I am using the real time glucose sensors as its a combined pump (I bought a Guardian RT a few years back - what a waste that expense has proven now...). I agree the sensors are not what they promise to be but the trends they give are proving useful. I find it does not track high, low or rapidly fluctuating sugars very well. But it does catch up which is why glucose trends become apparant. That brings me to the other great benefit of the pump - being able to select different background (basal) rates for different times of the day. Setting different bolus rates for meals and even different correction doses dependant on the time of day! The gent who started with me tells me you can also set different profiles for different days (working and non-working for example) although I haven't tried that yet myself. Medtronic Glucose Sensors: I have had a few problems, the last batch weren't manufactured properly so I couldn't insert them. They got stuck half way in - But Medtronic replaced them free of charge... Anyway having not posted for ages I have now written a small novel! In summary the pump seems really good, but time will tell. My doctor told me he was putting me on it because he didn't know what else to do - I am just so glad this has worked. It takes a lot of effort and learning but I'd recommend this to anyone who has the gumption to gain the knowledge and try! Mark
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8. RE: pumps
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sherrilynn32
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I am not in the UK, but I have had a pump for 5 years. It breaks a lot but when it is working, it is totally wonderful. Such freedom, and my A1C is 7.9 when I am not trying, it is much better when counting carbs. it is wonderful. the billing people are jerks though. medtronic is what I have been using. It is very expensive. But I wouldn't want to ever go back to the old style shots..... NEVER.
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10. RE: pumps
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micksmixxx
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Hi sherrilynn32,I'm sorry to hear of your bad experience with your MiniMed pump. I've been using MiniMed since late 1998, and only once had a problem with it. Sadly, that pump had come to the end of it's useful life and I had to have another. Unfortunately, the way these things are provided in the United States differs from here in the UK. Over here they're provided by our National Health System (it's a system where money is deducted from every working person's wages to finance it ... along with many other things too) so there's no out of pocket expenses for us. Maybe you should think about emigrating from the United States to our little country. lol. Like you, I've found that the pump has drastically reduced my HbA1c results. I'm down to 7.2% now and, hopefully, still on the way down. I'm also a fan of the insulin pump. At the time my previous one malfunctioned and I was admitted to hospital I left there on multiple daily injections, often needing 7 or 8 injections a day to bring my sugar levels down to what you might consider a 'normal' level. I felt so tied down by it all. They can have this pump back if they wrench it from my dead, or dying, hands. lol. Anyway, seeing as I'm late saying this, welcome to the forum. I hope you find it a useful resource. I haven't been here terribly long myself, but I find the information dispensed and the support phenomenal. I truly hope you find it the same. Be well, dear lady. Lots of Love and Light. Mick
x x x x
x x x P.S. Please don't be offended, or alarmed, at the "x's". It's simply a logo, of sorts, that I've used for some 30-odd years now.
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11. RE: pumps
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micksmixxx
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Come on carolyn,You're keeping me in suspenders ... oops! I mean suspense, too, just like Mark (mdf100). Have you actually got a pump yet? I remember reading that your endo likes to put forward people who may benefit from using one. If you do have one, how are you finding it? Has it taken any 'getting used to' for you? Do you feel that it's too cumbersome or more freedom giving? If you haven't got a pump, what seems to be the hold up? (I'm presuming here that your endo thought you'd be a good candidate for one, seeing as you'd mentioned that your endo was keen on their use. Please forgive me if I got the wrong end of the stick.) Pray, do tell us more. I'm sure I'm not the only interested person here. Whichever way it pans out for you, I wish you a long, healthy, complication-free life. Lots of Love and Light. Mick
x x x x
x x x
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