Pros of insulin pumps
- Eliminates the need for multiple daily injections
- Provides more precise insulin delivery
- Mimics the body's natural insulin release with both steady and mealtime doses
- Can be left in place for several days
- May help ensure more accurate dosing based on carbohydrate intake
- Offers convenience Show Full Answer
I work with a local Diabetes group that has a couple of insulin pump users and a couple of OmniPod users so here is an "observational" take on it after talking to both types of users
The Pump can hold many days of insulin. The newer one from Medtronic is like an artificial pancreas - it takes a reading from it's paired sensor every 5 minutes and adjusts your insulin level accordingly - just set it and let it do it's thing but it's also a $5000-$10,000 unit
It's also the size of a walkman (if you are old enough to remember those) 😁 so it has to be worn on a belt or some kind of holder and it has a tube that can get hung up on things - great system but maybe not so much if you are physically active - you would have to remove it to swim and I couldn't imagine jogging or playing flag football with the thing on - expensive kit that could get damaged or "ripped out"
The Omnipod is great for those that are active. You fill it with up to 3 days of insulin, apply the thing like a CGM sensor, just stick it on. Connect it via APP or CGM Sensor and let it do it's thing - it handles your basil needs and when you eat you just "tell it" and it does the bolus - but it's disposable and you need to change it every 3 days
Ideally, if I was going on Insulin I would look at a combination of pump, pod and even some pens - there does not appear to be a "perfect solution"