A lot has changed since 1921, when insulin was discovered. Up until the late 1970s, people on insulin used large glass syringes that had to be boiled so they could be reused. Today, people taking insulin or thinking of starting insulin have a lot more options. And getting that lifesaving insulin into your system has gotten a whole lot easier and less painful.
Let's review some of these advances in insulin-delivery systems to help you choose the method that best suits your lifestyle.
Insulin syringes. Syringes are the most widely available device for taking insulin, and are often the cheapest. Today's much smaller syringes are disposable (in fact, you should never reuse a syringe) and can be used with most types of insulin.
They can also be used to mix two different types of insulin, right inside the device. Syringes come in different sizes, which hold up to 30 units, 50 units, or 100 units. They also have different needle lengths and gauges (widths) for comfort.
One downside of syringes is that people who are visually impaired or who have trouble manipulating small objects may find it hard to draw insulin into the syringe and to see the exact dose they are drawing up.
Insulin pens. Many different kinds of insulin now come in pens. There are two varieties of pens: disposable (prefilled) and reusable (with replaceable insulin cartridges). A disposable needle attaches to the top of the insulin pen, so you don't need to worry about first drawing insulin into it. The pen needles also come in various lengths and gauges for comfort.
The benefit of the insulin pen is the ease of dosing - you just dial up the number of units you want - audible clicks will alert you as to how much you're dialing up. The number of units appears in a window.
The downside of insulin pens is that they don't allow you to mix specific doses of different insulins. They do, however, come premixed. Also, some hand strength is required to press the button to inject the insulin. And, depending on your insurance coverage, pens may be more expensive.
Insulin pump. This small device continuously delivers rapid-acting insulin through a catheter inserted under the skin. The pump often allows users to achieve better glycemic control because they can better match insulin to their lifestyles.
Injections are no longer necessary (although the catheter must be changed every two to three days), and very precise amounts of insulin can be delivered (up to 1/1,000 of a unit). Disadvantages include: the pump is more expensive; you are always attached to the pump; and a knowledge of carb counting is required.
Inhaled Insulin. We now have a powdered form of rapid-acting insulin (Exubera) that is inhaled into the lungs. Although this eliminates the need for rapid-acting insulin injections, you may still need an injection of long-acting insulin. You cannot use inhaled insulin if you have smoked within the past six months or have lung disease.
Thus, there is more than one way to take insulin, and you can even use a combination of these methods. Ask your doctor or diabetes educator which options may work best with your lifestyle. It is now possible to adjust your diabetes to your lifestyle, instead of the other way around!
