Advice on Injections

[Loey1953]

Hi, I am a Type 1 since Jan. 12. and have a few questions so hope someone can help.
I had been injecting into my abdomen since January and was then advised to change to my thighs on 13 March. How long should one inject in a particular area? I read somewhere that it's better to inject in the abdomen when taking Rapid Acting insulin and the thighs for Long Acting (basal). I have also changed to to BD Micro-Fine + needles 4mm which are brilliant, less painful. However I have this silly notion in my head that because they are so small I might not be getting all the insulin. Hopefully this is not true. I've been feeling very tired since the weekend and had a hypo yesterday (haven't had one for a number of weeks) so I'm just a bit paranoid. I take Novorapid (Insulin Aspart) 3 times daily and Lantus Insulin Glargine at night.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi there, I use 4mm as well and am on Novorapid for meals and Levemir at night.
I take the basal in the thigh and the rapid in the stomach. Why did they want you to change areas?
You should change the specific spot every time you inject, I find this to be easier by doing one side/week - left side of stomach and left thigh odd weeks and then right side even weeks moving the spot slightly every time. If you keep the needle in for a few seconds after you've injected there shouldn't be a problem with getting all the insulin.
If you didn't have a hypo for a number of weeks, you're doing great - keep it up!

 

[noblehead]

I inject my novorapid into my stomach, arms and rarely my legs. My lantus nearly always goes in the buttocks and again occasionally the thighs.

The following site has some useful info with regards to injecting insulin and site rotation:

http://www.bd.com/us/diabetes/page.aspx ... 01&id=7261

 

[rachelsnj]

Hi my 8 year old daughter is type 1 (2 years in July) and is on novorapid and lantus aswell. She injects the novorapid in either thigh and tummy on a rotation (breakfast goes in left thigh, lunch in tummy and tea in right thigh) then lantus goes in either left or right side top buttock area. This was advise from diabetes team and seems to work well. We always count to 10 once injected before removing the needle and that way the last few drops don't escape. I know some adults use their arms aswell but her nurse didn't recommend it for children. They just want us to rotate injection sites effectively.

 

[Loey1953]

Ah, thanks everyone for this really useful advice. Injection procedure is much clearer now. It's so easy to get into a muddle!!

 

[Pneu]

Similar to everyone else really... my rapid insulin always goes into my stomach.. alternating the side between injections... long acting goes into my buttocks or legs..

 

[iHs]

Similar to everyone else really... my rapid insulin always goes into my stomach.. alternating the side between injections... long acting goes into my buttocks or legs..

Pneu

Not sure how long it will take for you to get a pump but leave your stomach alone and use your arms for the bolus. If you dont you might find that you have absorbtion issues with infusion sets especially as you are controlling your bg levels with 10 injections every day.