As anyone found that when they change the pod there blood sugar seems to rise? Wondering if a small bolus needs to be given like I used to give with the minimed. I have called the company they stated that they have not had anyone complain about this. Does anyone else find this to be a issue. Other than that my son loves it.
That happens to me also, although not a high spike. I give myself a 1 unit bolus after replacing the pod and everything stays in check.
Hi…don’t have this problem…but I’m always checking in on the site…and I’m sure that you’ll soon have some suggestions…temp basal increases… bolus after pod change…bolus just prior to pod change. I believe, fairly confidently, that I’ve read it all here. This isn’t a rare thing. You should have your answer shortly.
when i would change my pod, i’d keep it off for about 30 minutes, because i would take a shower. in that 30 minutes, my BG usually went up 20-30 points.
I also encounter a blood sugar spike after I change the pod. I have tried injecting 1 unit of Humalog (that is the rapid acting insulin I use in the pod) before I change the pod…and 2 units of Humalog after I change the pod. I do both of these injections by syringe. I test often after a pod change so I can correct any low blood sugar numbers. I have also been advised by my diabetes educator to try doing a bolus of 1 unit after the pod change in place of the injections by syringe before and after a pod change. So tomorrow I will try that and see if that works for me. Best wishes to you.
Mayumi
It seems to be a somewhat common problem. Look through the past discussions on this group and you’ll see plenty of talk about it. Personally, I only notice it when I use certain sites, mostly my inner-thigh and sometimes my back. Other sites do not cause this for me.
What I’ve found works reasonably well is to set a temp basal of +50% for the first 6 hours or so (long enough to cover my first meal); in addition I also give my first meal bolus very early (like an hour before I eat) for that first meal. I have also tried giving a 1U bolus immediately after changing the pod, and that seems to help, too.
Needless to say, extra BG testing is needed when doing these things to make sure you don’t go too low.
I’ve tried the +50% temp basal too, but only for 3 hours which didn’t work very well for me. I think I will try your idea of the temp basal for 6 hours and see how that works. Thanks for sharing your ideas.
Mayumi
This is NOT uncommon. I’m surprised the Insulet folks haven’t heard anyone mention this. Although maybe not too surprised as people maybe working this out on their own or with their doctor. Like Eric said, I too have heard from others that they need to increase basal after a pod change.
I don’t know how Insulet can say they haven’t had anyone complain about this problem as I’ve called them twice about the same issue. Maybe they don’t record negative comments? I think it depends on which tech support person you happen to get on the phone, but that is just my opinion for what it is worth.
Mayumi
I also find that you can get different answers depending on who you talk to and with a question like this, they are not referring to a “database” of comments, but referring to only their individual experience and it’s probably not appropriate to represent that no one at Insulet has heard of such feedback.
I totally agree with you about the technicians referring to their own individual experience. Several days ago when I called there I actually got a technician who was a ‘pod’ wearer himself, and his answers reflected those of someone who actually knew what he was talking about. I actually get more information from sites like this one and from the people here who are pod users or from people who care for pod users. When I called my doctor’s office last week I got an automated answering machine, then had to go through a whole list of ‘choices’ depending on “why” I was calling. Talk about impersonal. Sorry…end of complaining.
This is a big reason why I can’t picture going with Omnipod. I can live with pod failures from time to time but the idea that my bg might destabilize every 3 days during pod changes seems an unacceptable compromise for the benefits of pumping. My hope is that the issue would not arise if I exclusively use abdomen sites. Anyone have this issue even with abdomen sites?
Don,
As I wrote above, I only experience this when using my inner-thigh and sometimes my back. On my ab or back of the arms it is not a problem.
I’m not sure this isn’t something that traditional pump users experience, too. There isn’t a lot of explanations that point to the design of the pump itself but rather the physiological aspects of CSII and changing the site. The possible explanations that my CDE offered all had to do with the way that our bodies absorb insulin subcutaneously. I’d be surprised if traditional infusion sets don’t have similar issues for some people.
I echo Eric’s point. I have the impression that traditional pump users experience this issue as well.
No wonder some of you have incredible A1c’s!!! I’ve never noticed! I just correct… I changed my pod on Sunday night. I’ll let you know when I change it again on Wednesday morning. I’ve never noticed issues. Hmmm…
I changed it to my thigh the other day and was high for about six hours. I increased the basal rate and checked BG about every 1 1/2 hours.
I’ve been on the POD since Oct/2008. Never had this issue.
Yes, that had happened to me. I can’t recall were I read it, but I saw an article on another forum that It stated that a .5 unit or 1 unit bolus before changing your pod and depending on personal settings should help maintain the glucose level very near to normal range in a pod change. If I can find the forum I will update.
I found that if I increase the basal rate at 5% for 6 hours blood sugars stay within normal ranges.