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The Hidden Cost of Diabetes Devices to Patients

I want to thank those who create the amazing devices that make my diabetes easier to manage and help me stay healthier. That said, there's a cost to new technology and devices we never talk about. It's the one to patients. And I'm not talking financial. While devices lighten the burden of managing my disease, they also create new burdens.

Patients who use devices must among other things:

• Invest time, effort and brainpower researching which device, among the many, are best for them
• Often spend time and aggravation dealing with their insurance company
• Spend time in training sessions learning how to use their device
• Know what to do…

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Articles of Interest

Why Did Miss Idaho Sierra Sandison Wear Her Insulin Pump During Competition?

Sandison invited others to post photos wearing their insulin pumps on social media. What resulted was a deluge of thousands of inspiring photos of people in 25 different countries (and counting!) with their pumps. “I didn’t know it was going to mean that much to people,” said Sandison, who was humbled by the colossal response.

A Do-It-Yourself Revolution in Diabetes Care

Now, as consumer gadgets weave themselves ever more tightly into everyday life, patients and their families are finding homespun solutions to problems medical-device manufacturers originally did not address. Industry executives say the pace of user-driven innovation was one reason the Food and Drug Administration recently reclassified remote glucose-monitoring devices, hastening approval for new models by big companies like Dexcom and Medtronics.

A Father Has Invented a Bionic Organ to Save His Son From Type 1 Diabetes

A sensor implanted just beneath the skin keeps an eye on blood sugar levels and sends that information to an iPhone app. Every five minutes, the app determines how much insulin (which lowers blood sugar) or glucagon (which raises blood sugar) its wearer needs and sends a command to the device to deliver the hormones via one of two pumps.

Eli Lilly Bets Big on Insulin-Delivery Devices

Eli Lilly & Co., one of the biggest makers of insulin, has been planning a risky new business venture: making the high-tech devices that deliver insulin to diabetes patients.

How A Beauty Queen With Diabetes Found Her 'Sugar Linings'

Last July, a photo changed Sierra Sandison's life. She went onstage in the Miss Idaho pageant with an insulin pump clipped to her bikini bottom. The photo and the #ShowMeYourPump hashtag she created went viral on social media and became NPR's most popular online story of the year.

How Insulin Pumps Work

The first insulin pump was designed in the early 1960s and looked like something the Ghostbusters would wear on their backs to blast wicked spirits. Smaller versions started cropping up in the 1970s, but it wasn’t until the mid-1980s that they were designed to deliver precise doses and became user-friendly...

Insulin Pump Vulnerable to Hacking

The system is vulnerable because those communications are not encrypted, or scrambled, to prevent hackers from gaining access to the device, said Radcliffe, who reported vulnerabilities in the pump to J&J in April.

Johnson & Johnson Abandoning Insulin Pumps

Animas Corp. will close and exit the insulin pump business, the company said Thursday, citing increased competition that made selling the pumps unsustainable. Sales of its Animas Vibe and OneTouch Ping pumps in the U.S. and Canada are discontinued immediately, the company said in a news release. The company said it is still evaluating the timing on exiting markets outside the U.S. and Canada.

People With Insulin Pumps and Pacemakers Should be Terrified of Hackers

The FDA isn't doing enough to stop medical-device hacking.

Putting Diabetes on Autopilot

New devices may spare patients from monitoring their blood glucose.

Resources

Omnipod

Omnipod* was designed to simplify life with diabetes. From parents struggling to manage their child’s insulin needs, to adults who’ve written off pumps altogether, Omnipod can simplify life with 3 days (up to 72 hours) of continuous, tubeless insulin delivery with no multiple daily injections.

12 Ways to Stay Safe with an Insulin Pump

It’s important to understand that we are ultimately the ones in charge of the technology and devices we use. These devices can only do what we tell them to do. The products go through unbelievable testing and retesting in clinical trials before they come to market. That being said, tech failures can happen to any product, from airplanes to insulin pumps. The best way to avoid problems along the way is to follow maintenance protocol.

5 Reasons People Ditch the Pump

There are plenty of articles discussing the pros of pump therapy, but few that discuss the cons. To offer some balance, here are some downsides to pump use that have caused people to switch back to multiple daily injections...

8 things I wish people understood about having Type 1 diabetes

No, my life isn't over. It's a pain in the ass, it's terrifying, but the treatments will on average get me through the day.

Insulin Pump Comparisons

Integrated Diabetes Comparisons evaluates the five most common insulin pumps.

Insulin Pump Timer

Insulin Pump Timer reminds you when to refill insulin, change infusion sets, or do other repetitive tasks.

Insulin Pumpers

Insulin Pumpers provides information and support for adults and children with diabetes and their families interested in insulin pump therapy.

Insulin Pumpers UK

Insulin Pumpers UK provides information and support for adults and children with diabetes and their families interested in insulin pump therapy.

InsulinNation

Insulin Nation is a digital diabetes news platform that shares the latest information on diabetes research, insulin therapy, and living well with Type 1 diabetes.

MiniMed

MiniMed combines your CGM and insulin delivery into one intuitive system that adjusts to you — reducing guesswork and helping you stay on track.

Animas Vibe

At Animas Corporation we make insulin pumps and we're dedicated to finding ways to make diabetes exceedingly manageable in every way.

Cellnovo

Our innovative insulin patch pump combines breakthrough proprietary technology with the latest communication and application advancements. Smart and extremely portable, we offer precise control of insulin through simple, intuitive operation. People managing their diabetes with intensive insulin therapy can efficiently manage their therapy while enjoying greater independence.

Medtronic

Medtronic Diabetes has remained the market leader, earning a reputation for excellence in insulin pump therapy and continuous glucose monitoring.

Omnipod

Omnipod DASH® Insulin Management System provides up to 3 days of non-stop insulin management without multiple daily injections, so you can live your life freely.

SOOIL

Setting the pace for innovative diabetes care.

Tandem Diabetes Care

Tandem Diabetes Care® is dedicated to making the lives of people with diabetes better and better, through relentless innovation and revolutionary customer experience.

ChildrenwithDiabetes.com

Latest information on the new advances in technology.

Clinical Diabetes

Important research on insulin pumps.

DiabetesNet.com

The number of people using insulin pumps has grown rapidly since their introduction over 30 years ago. Much of this growth has come from pump wearers enthusiastically sharing the benefits they experience.

MedicineNet

Probably the most exciting innovation in pump technology is the ability to use the pump in tandem with newer glucose sensing technology, known as an "artificial pancreas," that administers insulin based on actual glucose levels as determined by the glucose sensor.