Posts Tagged ‘insulin delivery’

Should You Take a “Vacation” From Your Insulin Pump?

October 6, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Control, Insulin Delivery, Insulin Pumps 
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insulin syringe

Photo: Norman Desjardins

A veteran insulin pump user wrote a thought-provoking post for HealthCentral.com about “taking a vacation” from insulin pumping. It begins:

By Kelsey Bonilia

“One of the ideas I’d been mulling over in the weeks leading up to my endocrinologist appointment was taking a pump vacation. I’d experienced several frustrating pump site malfunctions (the cannula kept kinking during insertion) that left me with stubbornly high blood sugars for hours. It was maddening to have poor blood sugar control because of my insulin delivery system. Also, after nearly five years of insulin pumping, I just wanted the freedom of life without a little medical device tethered to me.

Upon discussion with my doctor, I made the comment “I know that the pump is best…” to which he replied, “For some people, but it’s not inherently better.”  He knows that I eat a fairly disciplined diet and still test my blood sugar 10-12 times a day, so he agreed that switching to insulin injections would be fine for me.  He prescribed Humalog and Lantus insulin pens, which I’d never used before. It was kind of exciting to open the boxes of pens and learn how to use a new device!”

Kelsey plans to update the pros and cons of switching to insulin injections after using an insulin pump for almost five years. To read this and future posts on HealthCentral.com, >Click Here.<

Novo Nordisk Files for Approval of Ultra Long Acting Insulin

October 5, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Control, Diabetes Medication, Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery, Insulin Injections, Long Acting Insulin 
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Insulin

Insulin crystals

Novo Nordisk today announced the submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of two new drug applications for ultra-long-acting insulin degludec and the co-formulation, insulin degludec/insulin aspart. These insulin analogs have been developed for the treatment of people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

“We are very excited about being able to file for the approval of insulin degludec and insulin degludec/insulin aspart now also in the US,” said Mads Krogsgaard Thomsen, Executive Vice President and Chief Science Officer at Novo Nordisk. “This is another significant milestone for Novo Nordisk and for the millions of people with diabetes who require insulin injections.”

As with the European applications submitted on September 26, the U.S. filings are based on results from the BEGIN™ and BOOST™ clinical trial programs, which involved nearly 10,000 type 1 and type 2 diabetes patients. Data from the trials have shown insulin degludec to lower blood glucose levels, while demonstrating a low rate of hypoglycemia, especially at night. Read the full article

Edible Film a Possible Insulin Delivery Platform

September 22, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Medication, Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery, Living with Diabetes, Oral Diabetes Medication 
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In another promising development in the world of diabetes medication, the specialty pharmaceutical company MonoSol Rx is testing its unique PharmFilm as a possible oral insulin delivery platform. PharmFilm is a quick-dissolving film that can be impregnated with medication and placed under the tongue or against the inside of the cheek. The medication is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream through the mouth’s mucosal membranes.

The FDA has already approved two applications of the edible film – Zuplenz to treat nausea and vomiting, and Suboxone to treat opiod dependence. MonoSol Rx is now testing two new applications for PharmFilm, one dispenses a drug to treat ADHD, and the other delivers insulin for diabetics.

Read the full article

Overcoming Injection Anxiety

September 20, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Control, Diabetes Medication, Insulin Delivery, Insulin Injections 
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Have you or someone close to you been newly diagnosed as an insulin dependent diabetic? Are you anxious about giving yourself or your dependent insulin injections? Many diabetics say that giving themselves an insulin injection is the hardest part of the condition.

Or perhaps you’re an experienced diabetic who hasn’t kept up to date on the latest insulin delivery methods like spring loaded syringes, insulin pens and insulin jet injectors. Skipping doses of diabetes medication can lead to poor blood sugar control and diabetes complications. WebMD feature writer Stephanie Watson offers some practical advice in an article titled Overcoming Objections to Injections.

New Disposable Insulin Delivery Device About to Hit the Market

September 14, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Medication, Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery 
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V-Go Disposable Insulin Delivery Device

Valeritas, an American medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative drug delivery solutions, is poised to begin marketing a new disposable insulin delivery device called the V-Go Disposable Insulin Delivery Device.

The V-Go is designed to provide an alternative to multiple daily insulin injections for adult type 2 diabetics using basal-bolus insulin therapy. The V-Go delivers a continuous preset rate of basal insulin (20, 30 or 40 units of insulin per 24 hours) and allows for on demand bolus dosing at mealtimes (in two unit increments up to 36 units).

Users fill the V-Go with their desired insulin dose using an included disposable filling accessory, the V-Go EZ Fill. The small, lightweight (about 1 ounce when full) device delivers insulin subcutaneously for 24 hours, after which it is replaced with a new one. The discreet device is worn under a patient’s clothing, and should not be exposed to direct sunlight or high temperatures, although it can be submerged in up to three feet of water.

The non-electronic V-Go was tested using both Humalog insulin lispro and Novolog (insulin aspart), and achieved FDA approval at the end of 2010. The company has been pursuing financing to market it ever since, and has just announced that it has raised $150 million to bring the V-Go Disposable Insulin Delivery Device to market.

“Millions of adult patients suffer from type 2 diabetes and require insulin,” says Valeritas CEO Kristine Peterson, “We believe the V-Go will be an important treatment option to assist in the management of their diabetes.”  To visit the V-Go site and to sign up for email updates on the availability of the innovative insulin delivery device, >Click Here.<

Diabetes Videos on WebMD

August 18, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Control, Diabetes Resources and Tools, It's Complicated 
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Photo: renjith krishnan

More and more people are turning to the web for information on health issues, including diabetes. WebMD is one of the most highly respected sources of timely and trusted medical news and information on the web. The site’s Health A to Z section includes a comprehensive Diabetes Health Centre sub-section.

Aware that many people prefer to get their information in other ways rather than reading, WebMD has incorporated a number of alternative means of delivering information into their site, including interactive quizzes, tools such as a Food & Fitness Planner, and short documentary-style videos.

The diabetes-related videos feature real people in real life settings – diabetes patients, parents of diabetic children, researchers, and health care professionals. Currently, the site contains sixty diabetes videos on diverse topics, including:

  • Basic diabetes information (type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, pre-diabetes, diabetes diagnosis, diabetes control, diabetes medication…)

 

  • Diabetes management (diet, foot care, glucose monitoring, A1C testing, hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia…)

 

  • Diabetes in children (preschool, young children, adolescents…)

 

  • Insulin delivery methods (insulin pumps, insulin inhalers, islet cells transplant…)

 

  • Diabetes research and studies (diabetes vaccine, stem cells, investigational diabetes medications, glucose monitoring tattoo, cord blood study…)

 

  • New diabetes treatments (islet cells transplant, continuous glucose monitors, botox for foot wounds, silicone eye oil for retinopathy…)

 

  • Alternative diabetes treatment (vinegar for diabetes, antioxidants, hyperbaric oxygen, medicinal properties of kudzu…)

 

  • Diabetes complications (foot ulcers, diabetic retinopathy, diabetic neuropathy, diabetes and depression, kidney disease…)

 

Should a topic be of particular interest, every video is surrounded by links to related in-depth information. To view a WebMD Diabetes Health Centre video on a study on the use of vinegar as a diabetes medication >CLICK HERE.<

Mealtime Insulin Injections May be Replaced by an Insulin Inhaler

August 12, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Control, Diabetes Medication, Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery 
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There’s good news for insulin dependent diabetics who rely on fast-acting mealtime insulin injections to keep their blood sugar under control. MannKind Corporation has the go-ahead to continue clinical testing of its investigational inhaled insulin, AFREZZA. The drug maker and the FDA met to confirm the protocols for two new studies, one in type 1 diabetics, and one in type 2 diabetics.

AFREZZA is an ultra-rapid acting inhaled insulin which uses patented technology to deliver powdered insulin from a thumb-sized device into the lungs. The lungs are an effective option for delivering diabetes medication, largely because of their huge surface area (about the size of a tennis court). Read the full article

Oil Refining Expertise Being Applied to Closed Loop Artificial Pancreas

June 15, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Control, Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery, Insulin Pumps 
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Engineers from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are building on automation techniques used in oil refining to create a closed-loop artificial pancreas for type 1 diabetics. The Institute’s Professor B. Wayne Bequette, whose sister developed diabetes early in life, has been fine tuning an increasingly advanced diabetes control system for six years.

The pancreas of a type 1 diabetic produces little or no insulin, leaving them dependent on insulin injections. Blood sugar and insulin levels rise and fall normally during the day, responding to factors like meals, the type of food eaten, stress and exercise. Diabetics must monitor their blood sugar levels frequently, and adjust their insulin dose accordingly.

Bequette’s artificial pancreas marries an insulin pump with a continuous glucose monitoring system.  The combination quickly and accurately identifies and responds to rapid variations in blood sugar and insulin levels, eliminating the need for frequent testing and guesswork.

To read more about Bequette and his fellow researcher’s work on theEngineer >CLICK HERE.<

Artificial Pancreas Performs Well in British Trials

April 15, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery, Insulin Pumps 
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model of a pancreas
Pancreas model. Photo: Suleyman Habib

There’s good news coming out of Britain for type 1 diabetics.  Researchers conducting tests with a closed loop system artificial pancreas were able to better stabilize blood sugar in two groups of study participants than with a conventional insulin pump and – most importantly – to keep their blood sugar from dipping overnight. 

An artificial pancreas combines an insulin pump, a continuous glucose monitoring system, and a high tech that provides sophisticated instructions to the insulin pump and glucose monitor depending on blood sugar readings. For example, the computer algorithm computes insulin doses according to rising or falling blood sugar levels, and sends instructions to the insulin pump to deliver the optimum dose. The goal is to have the system act as much as a normal pancreas as possible.

 The researchers tested the artificial pancreas in 24 insulin dependent diabetics in two real-life scenarios – an evening meal eaten at home, and a dinner eaten out, including alcohol. Half of the diners were given the artificial pancreas system, while the other half used conventional insulin pump therapy. 

To read more on this story online at WebMD, >CLICK HERE.<

Insulin Therapy Changing With New and Improved Insulin Delivery Methods

April 14, 2011 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Diabetes Research and News, Insulin Delivery, Insulin Injections 
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An old insulin syringe

Old insulin syringe. Photo: Markus.Michalczyk

Not that long ago, being insulin dependent meant you had to carry around a syringe and a vial of insulin to deliver your insulin injections, making sure to keep them refrigerated. There are now a variety of methods for insulin delivery on the market, and some promising new developments on the horizon. These include:

1) Insulin pens. Most types of insulin are now available in convenient prefilled pens. Some insulin pens are entirely disposable when empty, and others use a replaceable insulin cartridge, usually containing 300 units. There is a dial on one end to set your desired dose. The pens offer discreet, push button insulin delivery. Some claim the injections are more comfortable than from a needle that has already been dulled by insertion into an insulin vial. Many people prefer to use an insulin pen if they are caring for a diabetic child or pet.
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