I am really interested in the Omni Pod but I am really worried that my little girl is too little for it. She is 6 years old and does not have a bit of fat on her body. I received my demo pod today and put it on her and it looked really big. She is on the Minimed pump right now. Can anyone let me know if they have little ones that is on the Omni Pod and how it’s working out?
I don’t have a little one with a pod, but when I got mine on Tuesday, the rep who trained me on it said that she’d started a 21-month-old boy on one earlier that week. The pods might be a little big, but also there’s no tubing, which could really be nice for a little one who wants to do a lot of running and playing. The adhesive tape stays on well, at least with mine so far it has.
Hello Sofia,
My son, Caleb, has been using the OmniPod for more than three years now. He started shortly after diagnosis and shortly after turning 4. He is now seven.
There are lots of wee ones who use it successfully. I know of several kids younger than Caleb was when he started, including a two year old boy.
Caleb never used another pump, so we cannot personally compare. I can understand how the Pod seems big, enormous in fact, in comparison to a regular infusion site. When we first spoke to Caleb’s endo about pumping, they did not even present OmniPod as an option (it was still somewhat new at the time). When I brought it up, I was told it would never work because it was too big for his body. I couldn’t understand this because from my perspective, the Pod was small in comparison to the infusion site with the tube and the pump of the other options. Indeed the part attached to the body is bigger, but the overall unit smaller.
They approved him of course, and they were surprised by his success. Our appointments became them asking us questions so they could counsel other patients.
I’m going on more than you wanted I’m sure, but I’ll mention a couple of other things:
- Placement on the tushie compounds the size issue. It seems bigger because it is sticking out.
- Fat - Caleb is not fat or chubby, and was much less so when he started OmniPod. But I have an older son who is as lean as can be and I often wonder how it would work for him, so I understand your concern. We place the Pods on Caleb’s back and belly, so generally four spots of rotation. As long as I don’t get too close to his spine, I’m able to use many places successfully, even those that seem like they have no meat at all. I would think as long as you were able to use a regular pump site, you could use an OmniPod pump site.
- Lots of kids use their arms successfully. Caleb tried it once and felt a wobbly sensation that he wasn’t comfortable with. He has yet to give it another try. We say when the smaller Pods come out, we’ll give the arm a try - who knows when that will be.
I think that’s it. It’s enough, no? lol
If I missed something, or you want to be pointed to other users, let me know.
All the best.
Lorraine
Sofia,
My sona Austin will turn 5 in September. He is very healthy and active and lean also. He started on the omnipod almost 2 years ago in September 2008. It works great! From what I hear, a new smaller thinner version of the pod will be coming out fairly soon. I would go for it. It has made a HUGE POSITIVE on our way of life!
Hi, my two year old daughter Madelyn started the pump in June - first pump ever by the way. She was diagnosed in Decmeber 09 and we were up to four shots a day. She is already used to the pump and loves it! When we do sometimes have to give an injection (usually around the change pod time) she does not even remember what they are anymore - after only two months! I defintely say try it and you will love it - we had several problems at first but now it is smooth sailing with hardly any problems at all. Some of our pods fail after a few hours or don’t beep when filling them up but otherwise they work all the time. We just came back from the beach and it was wonderful to not have to worry about a schedule for shots and the saltwater did not affect the adhesive at all. The PDM is about the size of a iphone or blackberry so it is very unobtrusive when out in public as well.
We place her pods on her back on a rotation basis and stay away from the spine area as well. The spots we choose are higher on her back since she wears a diaper still - yes working on potty training - but they don’t seem to bother her. Our Territory Manager from Insulet came to our house and retrained us (during our trial period) and she really went out of her way to help us As to spot selection, she also stated we could use the sides of her body and the back of her arm and legs - although we have not tried the arms and legs yet. The side worked just fine… especially on our road trip so she did not have to lean on her pod the whole trip. We stay away from tummy as she is constantly sliding up and down from furniture and stuff, although a six year old might be easier on it they Maddie!
Any other questions let me know and good luck.
Mary
I also have a Maddy who started on the pod right before she turned three(11/09) - we have had our ups and downs with it but overall it has made our life easier. One piece of advice is that if you start having trouble with a number of pods it could be time for a basal rate change - when they grow the change is rather quick and dramatic (not the slow uptick I was expecting). Also since the sites are limited(we only use back and arms) you may need to give them a break occasionally (we had to stop using the arms for a while - now the back is getting a break and the arms are working better than the back was).
Celeste
Hi -
Our son, Will, started using the OmniPod when he was 2 years old. I always laugh when adults are worried they don’t have any fat on their body and feel they won’t tolerate it! Will was pretty skinny so for the first year, we used just his bottom for placing the pods. As he got older (he’s now 4.5 years old), we use the back of his arms and still use the bottom. He NEVER wants anything on his tummy so that’s out for us. We’ve used the front of his legs but he’s pretty rough and tumble so when we use that area, the pod only lasts about 1-2 days.
Will has been using the OmniPod for 2.5 years now and we love it. I like that he doesn’t have to have something hooked to his body. That said, you do have to carry the PDM separately (I carry it in my purse and at preschool - it goes on a shelf for the teacher). We like the freedom of the pod - Will doesn’t have to worry about getting tangled up in tubing or anything. We don’t use any additional adhesive - just make sure that you clean the area with alcohol before placing it. You can buy individual alcohol wipes with benzocaine in them (numbing agent) and use for insertion and they work great. We place the pod on his arm when he wants to swim and wrap a coban wrap around it and he can swim all day.
A long time ago, I posted at Tips & Tricks section on this group - you might want to take a look at those posts to get geared up for the change.
Good luck!