Trusteel application?

Type 1 and LADA
1

Hi, I’ve been a pumper for many years, currently have a tslim x2. As a kid I took shots in arms and legs, and as a teen to young adult I used my sides (love handle areas), and now as an adult I’m using my stomach. (Illustrating that I’m 90% scar tissue, lol). I’m not skinny. I’ve used 90 degree teflon infusions, but moved to Autosoft 30’s because I have large areas of my stomach that—although are not scar tissue because I haven’t done much with them—cause bends with any cannula I try, and have poor absorption. The Autosoft 30’s worked for a while in the less “dense/muscle” areas where I had more padding, but now I have experienced some tunneling, where the insulin leaks out of the site instead of going in. This has happened multiple times now, so I just gave Trusteel a go. My first one was great, absorbed much better, smooth application, etc although I did find holding the little butterfly wings very difficult. My second through fourth applications were a nightmare. Second was a failure where the paper crumpled under it. Third I put into the denser area to see how it would work; paper almost caused issues again, and the wings stuck up. I then made the mistake of rolling lightly on it while I slept—it got lightly infected and I got it out just in time. Fourth was a somewhat ok application, although the paper started causing issues again. Then while I went to change clothes, the second piece of plastic just ripped off my skin and the paper crumpled under it, and (I didn’t notice till today—it may have happened after my shower) the metal part ripped through my skin, bled, and the paper crumpled under it. Now I’m back to Autosoft as I needed a break.

I think the last application went so bad because I used two Flonase spritzes (my Dexcom allergy trick) under the skin tac. I seem to be allergic on and off to any sticky stuff, so I thought I’d give that a try. I let each layer dry for 10 minutes before proceeding with the next, but I think it was this since the metal piece’s sticky paper seems to suck at adhering. (Also, the rip probably happened because the tubing cord was too short—I do have longer ones on the way).

Now to my actual question: are there tricks to how to hold the metal piece when inserting, so the paper will just stop getting caught on the skin when I press it down? (I noted the skin tac seems to make this harder as sometimes it gets caught on that, but can’t go without it…) I also noticed when I hold the infusion by the butterfly wings, it seems to cause the paper to start bending down, which probably encourages it to get caught. So yeah, anyone find a way to hold it besides using the wings?

Sorry if this is disjointed, it’s been a really hard day (dealing with another thing as well). Thank you so much for any tips related to putting in Trusteel’s! I’d like to be able to make something work so I can keep on getting insulin, lol.

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I’m in the same boat as you except in the reverse order. I started with 90 deg teflon and had very inconsistent absorption. TruSteel was much better with really good absorption but there are issues. I have now just started with the 30 deg teflon.
With the TruSteel I needed to “pinch an inch” (which means love handles only for me). I hold the butterfly wings between my thumb and second finger and my first finger(pointer) on top of the butterfly wings to push the TruSteel in. I try not to bend the butterfly wings back. With the pinch while inserting I then can tap down the paper and get reasonable adhesion. Some times there is a crease in the paper but I let that go. I can then try to bend the wings back to the reverse direction as much as possible. The wings will get caught in clothing some times. You can tape over the wings but this is a no go for me as I have Eczema.

1 Like
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Maybe I’m misunderstanding, but the only paper that I can think of is covering the adhesive that is to stick to the skin. I partially pull back the paper before filling the tubing in order to keep insulin off the adhesive. Then ideally, I’d pull them off before sticking the needle into skin.
IF using skin-tac, this would be essential … ooh … or MAYBE you don’t want their adhesive on your skin. If that is the case, just don’t loosen the paper covering over the adhesive or maybe it just easily gets caught … maybe trim off the paper tabs if you don’t want the paper removed. I’m quite happy w the TruSteel, but they do take a bit more effort to use. It’s getting easier w each one. I do not have difficulty with the adhesive. I do use the butterfly wings to insert the needle & then press down on the adhesive. I’ve heard some use Tegaderm on their skin & poke whatever infusion set or cgm sensor through it that they need to for those who don’t tolerate the adhesive. I believe Tegaderm (there may be other brands too) comes in rectangular shape. You could also cut one down the middle and use it as extra support over your needle or cut a hole in a piece to secure the connection point a few inches from the needle. I fill the tubing w insulin thru the needle, insert/stick in needle, disconnect at plastic hub, then slip my made hole over the connection piece to help attach to the skin, & reconnect. … Maybe one piece of Tegaderm could be an underlayer for both? You’d need a tight loop in the short connection tube. It’ll get easier each time. IF you have a durable med supplier, they’ll have various options. Hope this helps a bit.