Delivering Insulin-What Methods Are Used?
New kinds of insulin are being developed, and the syringe, needle, and vials
of insulin no longer need to be carried with you if you need multiple injections.
The syringe remains the most common method for delivering insulin, but advances
are being made to simplify the method of delivery. Researchers developed a
pill but found that enzymes from the stomach broke it down before it delivered
the insulin. A patch also proved to be disappointing. Various other methods
often proved too complicated or impractical.
A step up from the needle and syringes, and vials of insulin is the prefilled
insulin pins. It is easy to cover, injects the correct amount of insulin, and
delivered by an item that looks like a cartridge pen. If you need to make multiple
injections a day, the insulin pen may be the answer for you. Cartridges are
available with the many different forms of insulin available and a dial allows
you to inject the needed number of units you need. The tip of the pen is a
disposable needle. It punctures the skin just enough to deliver the insulin.
Because they are small and disposable, they are easier to carry than regular
syringes, insulin, swabs, and needles.
One of the most recent advances is the insulin pump. Several companies already
market a pump for insulin delivery and over 50,000 people are using it worldwide.
This pump is made of a reservoir that is similar to an insulin cartridge; a
battery ran pump, and a computer chip. This computer chip allows the user to
control the insulin delivered to the body. The pumps on the market today are
about the size of a beeper or pager. It attaches to the abdomen and a thin
plastic tube with a small, soft needle is inserted under the skin. This cannula
(needle) is replaced every two days and may taken off while showering or swimming.
This pump delivers insulin twenty-four hours a day, delivered at a set rate
and programmable to allow for sleeping, exercising, and variations in lifestyle
Another promising way of giving insulin is the inhalation method. The United
States Food and Drug Administration have not approved this method. It is in
phase III testing that means that humans have tested it. The results look good
and it might be on the market in the next one to two years. Many other medications
are delivered with the inhalation method. Asthma sufferers have inhalation
therapy that eases the effects of an asthma attack. Insulin would need to reach
the air sacks at the end of the bronchial tubes, as the tubes can’t absorb
the insulin. Powdered nebulizers and inhalers are being tested but need to
be proved safe before approved by the FDA.
Many Americans suffer from diabetes, and many more will be diagnosed in the
future. Obesity is growing more common and as people are educated, more cases
of diabetes will be found. Scientists and researchers are still looking for
a better more efficient way to deliver insulin to the body.
Diabetes, Is Pancreas Transplants a Choice?
There are many medications available to help control Type 2 diabetes. Insulin
is used to control some Type 2 and all of Type 1 cases. Researches are making
strides in more effective ways of delivering insulin. The public is being educated
about the many complications that go with the disease. The complications are
severe and chronic.
Type 1 diabetes is treated with insulin, exercise, and a special diabetic
diet. Type 2 diabetes starts out being treated with weight loss, diabetic diet,
and exercise. If blood sugar levels are not controlled, oral medications are
used, and if they are not effective, then insulin is prescribed. The definition
of diabetes is abnormally high levels of glucose in the blood. Our bodies make
insulin with the pancreas that naturally lowers the blood sugar levels. If
the pancreas doesn’t create enough insulin, or the body doesn’t
absorb it, then artificial insulin must be delivered to the body. Symptoms
are increased need to urinate, thirst, hunger; often weight loss is associated
with diabetes, and fatigue.
Doctors are working at preventing diabetes, educating the public about the
deadly complications, and controlling diabetes for those who already have it.
You can prevent or reduce the risk of getting diabetes by avoiding foods high
in fat, refined sugar, simple carbohydrates, and eating more fresh vegetables,
fruit, and fiber. Exercise helps reduce your chances of getting diabetes. Even
a small amount of exercise is better than no exercise at all. A 20-minute walk
three days a week, no matter what speed will help keep blood sugar levels low.
Insulin is given to control Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Another form of therapy
is a pancreas transplant. Several different methods of transplanting this organ
are being studied. The possibilities of transplanting a portion of the pancreas
or even the beta cells that are responsible for producing insulin are being
looked at. Nearly 8000 patients have had pancreas transplants, many of them
the same time a kidney transplant is performed. With new technology developed
every day, the number of pancreas transplants will grow in the next few years.
As with any surgery, there are risks. The medications used to keep the body
from rejecting the transplants also are a risk to the patient. There is also
the chance that diabetes will occur in the transplanted pancreas. There is
always a chance of rejection of the transplanted organs. Researchers are looking
at artificial barriers that can be used around the transplanted cells to protect
them against rejection. The barrier would still need the insulin to be delivered
to the body and protect the new transplant.
Researchers are studying the risks involved in doing only a pancreas transplant
when the kidney is not replaced. The issue is whether the risks involved are
worth the surgery.
There have been remarkable new discoveries and scientists are finding new
ways to control diabetes daily. The best you can do for your body is to do
everything possible to prevent diabetes before it develops. Age and obesity
are prominent causes of diabetes. Exercise, regular sleeping habits, and a
nutritious diet will help protect you against diabetes.
