Could someone explain to me how an insulin pump works?
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The insulin pump is "hooked up" by a small plastic needle under the skin, held with an adhesive. The newer pumps "know" how much insulin you need at certain times of day, and continuously give you that amount. (After they are set up by a professional) They do come with quite a bit of training. You "tell" it how much you are eating, and it "knows" how much insulin you will need to cover that food. It can be set to give you more or less insulin, depending on your activity level.
I believe that they are recommended for just about any type 1 diabetic, but are especially useful for children, and brittle diabetics.
I find that my pump is quite easy to use, and it is painless to hook it up. Once it is hooked up, I can't really feel it. After the first few weeks, when I got used to it, I hardly notice it, and I really do not miss the several shots I used to take daily. Now I just have to change out the infusion set every 3 days or so. The pump has a reservoir that holds a few days worth of insulin, so I refill it when I change it over.
Pumping requires more vigilant testing of blood sugar levels. But once the sugars are taken, all the guess work about how much insulin is needed is done for you. The pump "knows" exactly what to do. You just have to push a few buttons.
insulin pumps are small (pocket sized) machines with a small catheter (or tube) that is inserted with a tiny needle just under the skin and held in place with tape, the pump delivers a constant flow of insulin (amount is prescribed by your doc). you still have to keep up with your sugar and usually the doc will give you a "sliding scale" dose depending on your blood glucase result that you can program a dose of extra insulin if you need it. the site under your skin needs to be moved every few days, but it really beats shots 4 times a day. the machine itself is easy to understand and use, and it has a lock on it to prevent buttons accidentally being pushed if you're just up and walking around.
An insulin pump is a small device that delivers insulin continuously to the body depending on the blood glucose level.
I agree with everything the previous posters said with the exception of it delivering constant insulin depending on blood sugar level. You still have to check your blood sugar and count your carb intake. The pump delivers a slow "basal" drip of insulin that mimics the effects of long acting insulin. When you eat you set a "bolus" amount of insulin depending on the carb count for that meal (just like you would with a shot of fast acting insulin). Additionally you can administer correction boluses if your blood glucose level gets too high. In essence the pump can help you tighten the control of your diabetes and eliminate the need to stick yourself multiple times a day. One more correction is the part about the "tiny needle", it is a much larger needle but you only have to do it every 3-4 days.
well, there is a lot, my sis has an animas 1250 and it's mostly programming basils, carbsmart ( insulin for food ) and bg ( for correcting highs) you dose by carbsmart and using the up and down arrows to pick how many carbs you have to dose for. my mom knows about stuff like the combo bolus, but i don't to learn more go to the diabetes forums website www.diabetesforums.com
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