Hi Everyone, my daughter Kennedy really is interested in Omnipod, we did a saline trial last week with our trainer and CDE, she did well with the insertion, no pain, no pain on touching it, then at the end of the second day, she had a spell of intense itchiness under the adhesive which prompted her to take it off. She did have a long dance class that day and found that afterwards she also felt some pain on the insertion site. The pain resolved after she laid down and rested a bit, but the itchiness was really bad.
She is an atopic kid, asthma, allergies, the works, so I just want to think about how to try again and see if we can get her wearing the thing for three days.
Should I premed her with Singulair and Allegra and see if that works for itchies?
Seems a bit overkill to try the skin tac without really knowing if she needs it,
any advice?
She loves the controller, practically sleeps with it at night, and is showing it to all of her friends. Also she asked our CDE last week how much money she makes working for Omnipod, Interesting huh?
There are several barrier wipes that might help. Caleb had an issue with DexCom adhesive. After much trouble shooting we came up with a combination of barrier options that works for him. One people really like is Bard’s.
I’m on pods and had itchiness with pain after a month on the pods. After using a few different wipes and barriers - I found that a “dressing” works best for me. The only place I can find them is Walgreen’s. It’s called Tegaderm. It’s applied to your skin before the pod as a protective barrier. I occasionally have some irritation when removing the pod still. But if I don’t itch it - seems to be better. Hope this helps!!!
The Skin Tac/Skin Prep/Bard wipes aren’t just for adhesive issues… They are to put a barrier between the adhesive and your skin… So if your having a itch type issue… esp after sweating… Im thinking its an adhesive reaction… Id try the Allegra/Singular thing but id definitely put something between the skin and the pod…whether it be a barrier wipe, or an occlusive dressing (Tegaderm is my favorite), or both… You should be able to get the itch quotient down Tell us how it goes…
Ouch… Should try one of the diabetic mail order houses… Walgreens is VERY Expensive for Tegaderm…
American Diabetes Wholesale, or Allegro Medical, or other such places… You can get them around 60c a piece per 100 pack…(Allegro usually has some discount every month, ADW sometimes has free shipping but usually seems cheaper in general)
That happens to me, but usually the day that I change it. I had problems with it coming off it would leave my skin irritated and red. I tried using this tape that you put underneath the pod and I had an allergic reaction to it.
From my limited (9 month) experience, I’d go with the other guys advising a skin barrier. Be careful with Skin Tac though as the stuff is insanely tacky (go figure) and will make peeling the pod off much harder than with just the pod’s own adhesive. Not great if you’re talking about already sensitive skin. Best tip for avoiding irritation on removal is still to do it after a shower or bath when the adhesive is gooey.
Another idea is to try Hydorcortisone Spray (Walgreens) under the pod. Make sure it is fully dry before putting the pod over it. It has to be the spray formulation, the lotion is too greasy and adhesive won’t stay on.
If you do use a barrier wipe (we use Skin Prep from Smith and Nephew), use a removal wipe before removing the pod. We like Remove, from Smith and Nephew. How many more times can I use the word remove? Ha ha I can’t find these wipes locally, however…but they are easy to order online (ebay, amazone, med supply places etc) or sometimes your pharmacy will order them in for you (takes 2 days or so).
Talc/baby powder is a good way to deal with the excess skin-tac… Use it on top of the area that isnt being covered by the pod/pad to stick to the excess adhesive…
Before you spend a lot of money on products, try the Pod in a few different places. I have very sensitive skin, but I have no problem with the Pod on my arms, abdomen, and (sigh) the extra roll of fat above my waistline below my bra. However, if I put the Pod on my side or my back, I end up with a red, itchy rash after the second day. Some parts of a person’s body are more sensitive than others, so try relocating the next Pod to a different area. You might find that she has no problem at all with some sites. Good luck with the Pod. I wish it had been around when I was 12 and newly diagnosed with Type 1.
