Hi, I've been having trouble with large bubbles in the omnipod reservoir after filling the pod. I always make sure that i do not have any bubble in the needle and there always seems to be a bubble or two in the pod after filling. Do others have this problem as well ? if so what have you done to make sure there is no bubbles in the pods reservoir?
Thanks !
How can you tell without opening the pod ? Can you see the bubbles through the cover ?
How fast are you filling the reservoir? That is, how many seconds does it take for you to push all the insulin in, and how much are you putting in each time you fill a new pod?
Also, are you filling it w/ the pod on the table/countertop and the syringe held directly on top of it pointing straight down?
How big are these bubbles you're seeing? Enough that you have pod errors b/c the bubbles create pressure sensitivity differences and trip the switch? Or no?
How can you see inside the pod? I can't see the actual resevoir in the pod itself.
I have to ask as well...how can you tell you have bubbles in the reservoir?
I can see the bubbles because before I put the pod on i bend back the pods adhesive a little and see that the reservoir has air bubbles in it. I have also, after taking the pod off, have opened the pod up and looked in the insulin reservoir (usually 1/4 of insulin left in it) that there is a few air bubbles inside. The last air bubbles i have seen are fairly large. I have had a few pod that have failed while priming which i think have to do with this. I fill the pods with the needle at a direct 90 degree angle and i fill them within 6 - 12 seconds. i would say fairly slow. I usually put around 150 units in each time.
I've never figured out a way to prevent bubbles in reservoirs (although I must say, I only assume they are in the pod reservoir as I've never tried looking). I would think that as long as you place the pod on with the cannula pointing towards gravity, you shouldn't get any bubbles in the line. They would all stay at the top of the reservoir, no?
Unless they are interrupting the flow of insulin they must be harmless and perhaps everyone gets them but you're the only one who's bothered to check for them. If they interrupted the flow you'd know pretty fast that that's the case because your BG would shoot up to the sky. That said, now I'm going to look next time to see if I have bubbles; I'm curious.
actually the reason i looked for the bubbles is because I noticed i had been going higher than what i should be at and the cannulla was still in place in my fat tissue. so when i changed the pod i took it apart afterwards and noticed the large bubble at the end of the reservoir which the insulin is pushed out through. So by looking at all the pods that had failed or caused me to go high i found that there was bubbles in them. I have never had a problem with a pod that does not have bubbles in them. One thing that i thought of is that when i prime the pod i leave it upside down with the adhesive facing upwards. this maybe has something to do with the bubbles, I also only fill it 3/4 of the way full. if i filled the pod completely maybe there would be no bubbles?
Do you use insulin right out of the fridge? The insulin must be at room temperature. This way you have less bubbles and it is also better for the pod.