How are you suggesting that filling the cartridge improperly is leading to my infusion site issues? I’m open to any and all suggestions because this is awful.
I’m always happy when things work out for others. I just don’t see it as friendly when someone suggests that someone’s major, very frustrating issue is not real or must be a simple user error because it works for them and has always worked. Again, I’ve spent hours on the phone with the people who make these devices analyzing all of the parts, but sometimes us users know a thing or two they may be missing. So please, if you know something I don’t, share.
I never said the problem isn’t real. Don’t put words in my mouth and then lecture on being rude. You’ve used every infusion set known to man, you rotate the sites. The only thing you don’t mention is what insulin your using. I assumed your insulin is not past the expiration date. After all this, I believe your not filling the cartridge properly. There are many very specific steps you have to take to get all the air out of the cartridge. If not done properly, the pump will not function as intended.
Ok thank you. I wasn’t referring to you when I said not real, but I am sorry. On novolog, not expired. I’ve done the same thing for years with no issues then a host of issues for several months and now again. If you have any specific information on how those may be connected, that would be great. If it helps, I follow a very strict routine on filling the cartridges and believe I do it correctly and remove all of the air. It wasn’t an issue from oct 2018- until now or the 4 years before that. I’m looking to see if someone has some insight on maybe body reactions or something like that or anything I may have missed.
If I get anything wrong or leave something out I apologise:
You’ve tried numerous infusion sets with little success
Per our conversation, you are following proper procedure to fill cartridge (I don’t doubt this)
Have tried various parts of your body for infusion sets and still have issues
Using proper insulin that is not expired
From what I’m seeing, either the Tandem pump is not a good fit for you, and you should look into other brands or maybe an insulin pump is just not going to work with your body for reasons I can’t explain and cannot speculate about.
Dang. Unfortunately, my occlusions are real. My numbers spike like no other and usually start to trend up right before I get one. So I end up having to change the site.
And the temperature thing seems to be a real issue! The only problem is I get them in the middle of the night even- when my pump isn’t against my body. I wear a clip like the one in the article and haven’t seen any correlation with that. Thank you for sharing!
Although I have written several blogposts address false occlusion alarms with my Tandem pump, I have never 100% gotten rid of them. Fortunately I have never gotten them as frequently as @Riley23.
What I am doing these days is using the Nite Ize Clip as shown in my blogpost linked above. I clip the pump to my waistband and never put it in my pocket anymore. I use both TruSteel and VariSoft sets and see no difference in the frequency of occlusion alarms with TruSteel. Sometimes I pull air from the cartridge before filling it; sometimes I don’t. For me that has never made a difference.
Things I don’t do. I won’t use the Tandem case because it is heavy and bulky. I don’t hold my pump extended when I give a bolus. I don’t change my cartridge every 3 days.
IMO these occlusion alarms have something to do with pressure and I think some pumps or more sensitive than others. Otherwise why would some people never get occlusion alarms??? I never get alarms when I have over 150 units of insulin in the pump. If I were willing to throw away a lot of insulin or reuse it, I could fill every cartridge to 300 units and change it when it gets to 150 units. I would never have a false occlusion alarm. My alarms are 95% false and are resolved by resuming insulin.
@Riley23 I am so sorry that you are having this issue. I assume that you’ve gotten at least one replacement pump. If not, work with your local rep to insist on this. Also if you’ve just started to get them, try a box of cartridges with a different lot number and similarly a box of infusion sets with a different lot number.
i am all of a sudden having occlusion problems myself. it started last weekend. i have had 0 occlusion problems since i got the pump back in december. i am using the trusteel 23/32 inch infusion sets 8mm. i got the trusteel sites because you can put them back in if you pull them out by accident, and also because the old cannula ones i used with medtronic would kink in my leg and towards the end of me using medtronic, i had occlusion on every site. so i have loved the trusteel sites to death and brag about them. but now ever since last weekend like you, i have seen my numbers go way up and i can tell before it happens cuz my numbers start going up. its been going on a week and im super frustrated mentally and physically exhausted from giving myself insulin injections every 2-3 hours and hardly sleeping. numbers are in the 200’s all day versus when i am using the pump they tend to stay far away from that. i am very active and my numbers are awesome. i have called tandem twice now, with today being the second time. first time this past tuesday, they said they are going to send me a new box of sites. i doubt this will work though, because i have 7 sites left, and i bet every one of them will have the same issue. my issue is within 1-2 days of inserting a site, i get an occlusion alarm. and it seems that the 8 mm part of the tubing that has the female plastic connection to the needle part is getting jammed. i get insulin coming from cartridge all the way down to male plastic part on tube just fine, but when i look at the connecting piece, its completely jammed. i seen on an earlier post that someone said they were getting skin in their site causing it to jam. i really hope to hell thats not my case as i have no idea how to keep that from happening. and neither does tandem it seems like, as they are forwarding me now to a clinical specialist they have for more troubleshooting. so heres to all of us getting this figured out and not being frustrated and zombies from our pumps not working properly
This is exactly what is happening to me right now. Every single thing you said, also using trusteel. I just got a brand new box of infusion sets yesterday and the occlusions have already started. Please tell me you figured out what the problem was?!
It actually ended up being a faulty part in my pump. I got a replacement tandem x2 pump under warranty and haven’t had an issue since. The part that pushes the insulin from the cartridge through the infusion set wasn’t working Right and not getting the insulin into the end of the site.
I encountered the same problem with occlusions and
have to resort to multiple needle injections in the last 3 years.
I had used Medtronic Pump since 2000 and 5 years ago, I frequently got into occlusion problem trying all their type
of infusion sets and at various sites (stomach, arm, thigh).
Eventually I had to switch to needle injections the last 3 years.
I am curious whether I may have some luck with the occlusion
after 3 years of no pumping.
Since I am using Dexcom CGM G6,
I am ordering a Tandem X2 with their Tru Steel 8mm in fusion set. I’ll let your know if I have good
luck without the occlusion problems. I highly doubt it since
the infusion sets of Tandem are identical to those of Medtronic.
Yes, I have pumped since 2000 with Medtronic pump
for many years.
Then with the persistent occlusions, I have turned to
complete multiple needle injections since 3 years ago.
You appear to be saying that you tried Medtronic’s MiniMed Sure-T metal cannula infusion sets but also had a bad experience (occlusions?) while using them? Yes?
What advice has your medical team offered? I’m also curious how high or low your basal rates are, if you don’t mind my asking.
