First set removed early

[LittleSue]

Didn't feel right yesterday, 2 days after starting saline. Blood sugars OK at lunch and of course my insulin is still injected, so not overly concerned. But by 7pm up to 17 :shock: Cannula site still comfortable and looked healthy. I blamed the spike on a very stressful day at work even though I felt rough. Big correction and small snack as "dinner" only brought me down to 15 though. Probably had ketones, but totally forgot to check.

Checked the site again at (late) bedtime and found it rather sore, so decided to remove the cannula then instead of this morning. Wasn't at all squeamish when I put the set in, but now I pulled at the adhesive and felt a bit faint and queasy. Ended up removing the cannula lying on the sofa so I couldn't fall if I fainted

The end of the cannula seemed to have some blood mixed in.

Lay there about 30 mins til I felt better. With the cat snuggled down on my chest purring (it wasn't all bad). Finally went to bed around midnight, having decided enough was enough and this once, putting another set in could wait.

Trace of ketones this morning, bs down to 8, site feels more comfortable and I feel almost back to normal.

Learnt my lesson about checking for ketones. The cat had been on my lap earlier, pump in my trouser pocket, maybe she'd pushed it against the set and made it sore? Maybe I didn't put it in right? Maybe I'll be changing sets every 2 days and lying down to do it!

 

[ebony321]

Hi,

Everyone forgets things so don't worry, your Bg's seem to be coming down, stress can be a big factor. If your still injecting it may be unlikely you had ketones as you still are getting insulin, but of course it's always best to check,

What sort of meter do you use? my meter is set to warn me to test for ketones at a certain level so i never forget because it's beeping at me to do it!

Also, are your sets very sticky? i use a spray to loosen the adhesive so it's easy to pull off. You simply spray, leave it on for a few seconds and it's very very easy to pull off so it's extremely helpful if your cannula is a bit sore. I get this on prescription but one canister has lasted me ages!!

It may have been pressue on the set to make is sore, or youcould have hit some scar tissue or a small vessell that made it sore or bloody.

I always change mine if they are sore or feel funny. I occasionally get cannulas that bleed a little bit even if they haven't been painful or sore.

If the site is continually sore or looks angry and red it's advised that you go to your GP to get some antibiotics to prevent infection. This has never happened to me, i've had a badly bruised site before but nothing that i've been worried about, i keep an eye on sore sites for a few days but they always heal fine.

Remember to alternate your sites as you would injections and i'm sure you'll be fine.

Follow your initiative and instinct when it comes to infusion sites and cannulas, if it doesn't feel right it probably isn't. Change it or talk to a GP or nurse if your unsure.

Most of all don't worry too much you'll be a pumping pro before you know it

 

[jopar]

What type of sets are you using, Teflon or Metal?

Metal sets you should change ever 48 hours, Teflon are 72 hours.

Some people find that they don't get on with one type of sets, but fair better with another type, so it can be a bit of trial and error finding the set that best suits you... Then a small amount of pumpers find that they have to change sooner than the reccomended time spam, due to the sets start to react with the body a lot quicker, don't forget the body will see the canular as being a forgien body...

But do mention this to your DSN, and perhaps ask for a sample of some of the other sets, so that you can swap around to find the one that suits best..

 

[iHs]

Hi Sue

I presume that your first starting off set is either a Quickset or Mio? Both are easy to put in but because of the adhesive, are a bit harder to pull off the skin when removing them.

If you haven't got any medical adhesive remover, these can be got hold of by free samples from the companies that manufacture them. Lift Plus is one well known remover, others are Apeel, Niltac and Hollister. They all do the same job and are very easy to use, making removal of the set as painless as poss and should not cause you to bleed if you are careful.

Once you've had a go at putting a set in and then taking it out a few times as you do set changes, things will then get much less of an ordeal.

As Jopar says, if you can't get on with one set, then see if you can try another.

 

[LittleSue]

Thanks everyone.

iHs kindly PM'd me some links to order samples of Niltac and Liftplus, which I've done - thanks. It wasn't that the adhesive was hard to get off, more the vague nauseous/queasy feeling combined with the thought of what I was doing. Last year I had to lie down when someone read out a 'post-op care of your wound' leaflet :roll: But anything that makes the whole process faster is worth a try, it must be better if I have less time to think about it.

It was a Silhouette (teflon, variable angle). Inserted about 10.30am Tuesday, so I'd planned to remove it Friday before going to work and put a new one in Friday evening so I didn't have to rush insertion. I did ask for a few different ones to try, but they said no, they're too expensive and I must decide. When I narrowed it down to Quickset or Silhouette they had boxes of them anyway. Once my own pump arrives I may ask Medtronic for some samples. I have another Silhouette to try, will probably put that in Sunday teatime and try again. In theory I should then remove it Wednesday teatime. From the end of work on Tuesday (48 hours) I'll be ready to remove it if/whenever things start to go awry as I'm at home all Wednesday.

Having read this forum ever since I realised a pump might be helpful, I knew some people need to change sets sooner than standard. Once my belly felt vaguely not right (all over, not specifically near the site), I had cannula issues in mind, but didn't want to blame that too soon, especially as it couldn't prevent insulin delivery. It remained comfortable until just before I removed it, and the skin never got angry or red. I'll try to remember this and trust my instinct in future though.

I still think I had Ketones. I didn't feel as bad yesterday as when I had definite ketones a few months ago, but it was like a milder version of the same sicky, muzzy-headed feeling. Annoying that the time you need to test for ketones, is when you're less likely to think clearly.

My meter (Freestyle Lite) doesn't prompt for ketone testing. Hope I've learned that lesson, but I could put a sticker in my meter case to remind me.

Left a message for the nurse but she hasn't rung back yet.

I feel a strange attachment (pun intended) to keep my 'first set' so haven't put it in the sharps box yet. Did anyone else keep their first set? How long was it before you realised that was daft?!