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Blood fountains

Jollymon

Jollymon

Well-Known Member
Messages
431
Location
Out-of-town
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Dislikes
Not having good chocolate, and not cycling
What makes a fine running infusion set stop running, and then turn into a blood fountain in pulling it out? This is just a mystery to me.

I do have sets that I push in that bleed profusely after I stick them in. Those are easy to see by the way the thing quickly fills with blood. But I had one last week that ran fine for a day, then it stopped. When I pulled it out it just got messy. For as long as I’ve been pumping, I have never figured this out.
 
Hi @Jollymon, Maybe the cannula was close to a blood vessel and with a little movement (and I think you are using metal cannulas)? the cannula has hit the blood vessel and the insulin flow through the tubing has been slow enough that the blood has pushed up the into the tubing and clot. Removing the cannula and adhesive patch then allows the blood vessel to bleed out along the track of the cannula.
I had an episode where I had placed the cannula under the skin, then removed the tubing to have it filled as part of the change of reservoir and then found that the tubing was blocked. I had been holding the tubing up for the filling procedure and then noted some blood flowing back from the top. I figured the needle/cannula hit a blood vessel on entry (? the perfect mosquito strike) and by the time I was doing the tube filling the blood had clotted and the the tubing being blocked would not fill.
I hope the first paragraph hat might provide you with a theory if not a definitive answer.:):):)
 
Until we can see under our own skins, I agree we’re just working in theory. But we have to start somewhere.

I’m using soft cannulas. Maybe the cannula end aggravated a blood vessel on the top of the muscle layer. I do enough sit-ups. Maybe that motion got something irritated. IDK.
 
Sounds very plausible. We need some research done where the cannulas are viewed by ultrasound so that the movement. location etc can be better understood.

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Jollymon said:
What makes a fine running infusion set stop running, and then turn into a blood fountain in pulling it out? This is just a mystery to me.

I do have sets that I push in that bleed profusely after I stick them in. Those are easy to see by the way the thing quickly fills with blood. But I had one last week that ran fine for a day, then it stopped. When I pulled it out it just got messy. For as long as I’ve been pumping, I have never figured this out.
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Hi, Jolymon, i have never had any sets that fill with blood. If the needle is very sore when inserted i always take it out and usually put it elsewhere or discard if that is not possible.
Re your second query, regarding the pump stopping running, this does not seem to happen totally, but sometimes I do have sudden highs, usually after at least a day and a half, or more, when the pump instructs me to check for an infusion, and i take out the set and then there is some tiny amount of blood or occasionally lots of blood. Someone, i cant recall who (i have used pumps for 10 yrs and use metal needles) told me that a small infection might sometimes develop round the needle, which causes minor local inflammation etc - this may be correct, as if i am using antibiotics i have noticed this does not happen. I am more prone to infections anyway, so this may not be the reason you have the effects you describe. I did have similar problems yrs ago, but less so. I do not know how long you have used a pump, but i also have been told that many years of usage does lead to some microscopic skin damage and scarring , and possibly the skin could become more prone to infection.....
 
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