My daughter is currently on Humulin N and we are thinking about switching her to Lantus. I was wondering if
I could get some opinions on which one is better?
http://diabetesmanager.pbworks.com/f/1241711657/figure7h.png
Humulin N (NPH) is a medium acting insulin. It has a full life of about 10-16 hours and is usually given every 8 hours to try and keep a relatively constant supply.
Lantus (Glargine) is a long acting basal insulin that lasts 20-26 hours and is usually injected once per day or in 2 divided doses. It's long actions provided a stable background of insulin throughout the day.
I am lantus and like it. I have to do the divided doses because I have horrible dawn phenomenon when I only do a single injection. Plus it allows a few hours of wiggle room for dosage. Never used NPH but from what I understand and what is in the ADA manuals/textbooks more people are turning to glargine because of its ease in dosing and allowing for better control resulting in to lower A1Cs.
I am not sure if lantus is approved for children if it is then I would go for it based on my horrid experience with NPH. The only good thing NPH is that it is cheap.
Lantus is approved for use by kids, but it has not been studied in children younger than 6 years. That does not mean that it is unsafe, only that it has just not been studied. And better is a relative term. While many people find Lantus works very well and they can use just one injection, some people do experience a peak. That may occur more often in a child, others with more experience would need to chime in.
Another difference between the two insulin’s in your case may be your ability to mix. Since N can mixed with rapid insulins (whereas Lantus and Levemir cannot), you may be able to reduce the overall number of injections by combining basal/bolus injections into the same syringe at mealtimes.