insulin pump and skin infections

JessP

Well-Known Member
Messages
139
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi,
I am a pump user and over the last 6 months have had 2 bad infections from pump sites which have resulted in needing antibiotics (thankfully avoided admission to hospital). Has anyone else had this problem? Did you come up with any ways of avoiding this? I am changing my pump site every 2-3 days, good hygiene etc.
Thanks,
Jess
 

shedges

Well-Known Member
Messages
432
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi Jess,

I had problems with irritation, redness and swelling, but not actual infections needing antibiotics. The solution was to change infusion set. I went from a Medtronic Silhouette to a Mio and haven't had anything like the same problems since changing set.

What pump / infusion set do you use?

Sam
 

JessP

Well-Known Member
Messages
139
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Thanks Sam,
I use the medtronic with the mio set. I get irritation most of the time but these infections are different and quite horrid. Think I'll fire an email to my diabetes nurse to see if she has any suggestions.
Thanks,
Jess


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Spiker

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,685
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
I had a bad infection on one site on my thigh which has taken a couple of months to clear up. I did not use antibiotics because someone on here mentioned possible scarring. I just treated it by draining it frequently and keeping it covered with a breathable dressing. It was caused by the canula raking around and making a large wound that was open for too long (I left the canula in for about 4-5 days and only removed it after it was painful. The solution for me is to not use that part of my body any more.
 

fansy

Member
Messages
8
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
I have not gotten an infection, but I all of sudden got allergic to the uh..band aid? around the needle. I didn't understand it at first and skipped pump sites- I got red and swelled up around the needle. Now I just use another kind of uh...band-aid under the other..not going to write that word again( it rhymes with Bob Geldof :p) and I'm doing fine :)
 

lilyfleur

Well-Known Member
Messages
59
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
I had this problem when I started on a pump about 5 years ago, and after the first one, everything went downhill from there. I had another one a month or two later, and then another one a month or so after that, then one after a couple of weeks... up until just before I came off the pump when I realised the insulin wasn't delivering as soon as I changed the set. I had to give myself a break from it (and just started back up after 2 years about 2 months ago. Having no problems at all now) because I was so covered in scars and lumps and I felt as if my body was just trying to fight any intrusion off. Looking back on it now, I was taught to just "clean the cannula site before insertion with soap and water" whereas in America they're taught to use antibacterial or antiseptic wipes (or whatever they're called) so I asked if I could do that this time around (they didn't recommend it because it could toughen your skin but I figured if they're all doing it in America without complaining of skin problems, why not try it and find out?) so I do that all the time now. I also changed from the quick-sets to the mio infusion sets because the quick set insertion device was AWFUL- the stickers would always get stuck and it wouldn't go in right which would result in bent cannulas. I've not had this problem with the mios, and I like that because it's a new inserter everytime, you don't have to worry about whether the insertion device is clean. Also, looking back on it, I think I should have avoided the entire place around the previous infections- the first one I got was on my left leg, and I think I should've stopped using that leg completely for at least a couple of months to allow it chance to heal properly. That may have prevented me from getting further infections.
The best advice I could give you would be to go NOWHERE NEAR the previous infection sites with your cannulas for a good few months, and only do set changes just before a meal if you can- the biggest problem I found was that when I did the set change, I wouldn't know if it was okay until giving a large dose of insulin. The basal insulin went in too slowly for the pump to notice it wasn't delivering, and I found that I'd only realise it wasn't working either if I gave a dose of around 10 units of insulin, or if I tested my blood sugars and they were crazy high for no apparent reason. By that time, the infection would be needing treatment because the lack of insulin caused it to develop very fast, and I'd become more insulin resistant so it wasn't until getting antibiotics that I could really get back to normal.
Hopefully in your case, you won't have any more trouble anyway! Good luck!
 
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Stefano

Well-Known Member
Messages
123
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi I also use Medtronic and mio infusion set. Luckily I never had a problem. And I go swimming often which could be a risk for the area.
I also change my infusion set before my dinner so I can easily realise if the new set is working or not. I know that it is suggested not to change before a meal but, in my opinion, this is the only effective way to easily understand if the set is working.


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