I wanted to change my set early be cause I was running high, pump said I had 64 units left, I did not want to waste it so I used a syringe to extract it, got out 84 units, I found that to be very interesting, maybe a low resevoir warning is not as low as we think
depending on the pump, (I use Minimed 722) there can be 30 units left in a reservior when you pump says ZERO. good to know if you are someone like me who, sometimes, waits for the gas gauge to be E and the light to be on for a long time before getting gas! =)
You can change the settings on your Minimed – select Utilities, Alarm, Low Reservoir Warning. You can set the low reservoir warning by number of units remaining or amount of time until empty.
There was a post several months ago that talked about there being extra insulin in the reservoir even after the pump says it is empty. I have certainly found that there is insulin remaining when the pump says there reservoir is empty.
When I am changing the infusion site, but not the reservoir, I have been know to use a syringe to add more insulin to the reservoir to fill it back up – I keep the same tubing, too, and just do a fixed prime.
I save all my reservoirs with insulin still in them, I keep them in the refrigerator and when I get down to the end of the insulin in the bottle I fill the bottle up with those left over reservoirs. I then use this insulin to fill up new reservoirs. After this if the insulin in the reservoir does not get used I toss it in the trash. Some people will say that this will affect you bg and you may run high. This may be true in some people but I have not found that to be the case in my situation.
I use my left over insulin to prime the next set. When I disconnect the tubing to the current set, I reconnect it to the new tubing and push the remaining contents in the new tubing. I push it all through because i regard it as no longer at full potency after three days out of the refrigerator. Since the new tubing is already full of insulin, I only push less than one unit into the prime for the new cartridge. That way I know the tubing is filled as I insert it and I have not wasted the insulin i just put in for a prime.
rick Phillips
What a great way to use that insulin, Rick. I just toss any insulin but I change everything when I do a set change. My pump has 8 to 10 usable units when it ‘thinks’ it’s empty. The tubing is about just a bit more but I use the shortest length.
I often recycle the tubing – several times through, so I do not waste the insulin in the tube. I skip the prime, and go right to the fixed prime.
I toss everything as well so it works very well for starting a new set. I wish I could take credit for its discovery, but the minimed person showed me how to do it and I have to asmit it is a good technique.
rick
You guys are more cautious than I am. I inject the insulin from the old reservoir back into the vial. There’s enough waste with the pump, no need to waste more. I won’t add old insulin to a new vial though… I guess that’s my fear of cross-contamination.
I have the accu-chek spirit. I’ve only been using it a short while but on Monday I was due to change my infusion set. I purposely dont fill the reservoir up anymore, so I know that the reservoir is almost empty when I’m due to change. In the morning it alarmed and told me that I had a low reservoir but I checked the amount of units left in it and I knew I’d have enough to get me through until after lunch. However, when I gave my lunch bolus it said alarmed occlusion. It only gave 6.1 units of the 6.7 I had asked it to. I checked the tubing and it was ok so started pump again. No joy. It said occlusion again. Despite telling me there were 6 units left in the reservoir, there obviously wasnt. Had to rush home and change it after eating.
It seems like the rest of you have the other problem… there is still insulin left when it says empty!
I time my insulin perfectly to when I should change my cartridge with minimal waste.If I think I am going too be too short of insulin I will skip a meal and do a basal test.I find it helps to make it last the amount of time I need.