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Injection sites for bolus

B

birchy66

Well-Known Member
Hi all, I had cardiac angioplasty (stents in my coronary arteries) four months ago and the hospital put me on blood thinning meds one of which is called Ticagrelor. This has quite nasty side effects including bruising and bleeding. My tummy area is covered in bruises some can be huge and purple and you only have to pierce a small blood vessel for a bad bruise to appear.
My question is what other sites can I use for bolusing as I am aware that the tummy area absorbs insulin more quickly than say my thighs or arms which I never use. I always inject my basal into my buttocks (ouch!) Can anyone advise what other areas would be OK for bolusing.
The good news is that I only have to take this drug for twelve months so only eight months to go.
Thanks for reading.
 
I'm on a pump but when on MDI, I used my thighs for boluses. I've also used my arms but that's trickier and I found I bruised more.
 
I use arms -- they are a bit tricky in terms of "pinching" an inch prior to injecting
but if you are using shorter needles ( 4mm ) it shouldn't be an issue
 
birchy66 said:
Thanks azure and himtoo. I'll try my thighs but how many minutes before a meal would you inject as I don't want hypo problems.
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I always find thighs slower to absorb -- it is a bit of trial and error
I would start with injecting 5 minutes before meal and work outwards from there until you get that lovely medium of no hypo and not a big spike ( easier said in writing than in practise )
and after 44 years I have had a lot of practise :D
 
birchy66 said:
Thanks azure and himtoo. I'll try my thighs but how many minutes before a meal would you inject as I don't want hypo problems.
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Yep, I agree with @himtoo Start 5 mins in advance and if that's not early enough, move to 10 mins, etc.

I find my thigh absorb insulin quite quickly, but then I never sit still : D
 
birchy66 said:
Can anyone advise what other areas would be OK for bolusing.
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You could use the back of your arms, if you raise the arm up slightly and come in underneath with the pen it makes it easier to inject there, also I believe the absorption rate is slightly faster in the arms than the legs but still lags behind the stomach as your already aware .
 
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