Rapid d's...occlusions...

[donnellysdogs]

Hi

Just really wanting to know if anybody else has had occlusions using rapid d's....

My reason is, a while back I started to use a new lot number box of rapid d's to the ones I was given for the first 5 months of using them, which Inever had any alarms. I started using this box, and I had to keep altering my basals up, and then I had an occlusion. I also had a couple of occasions where I had seepage of blood and insulin coming on to the white sticky stuff, and I had bad markings when I removed them, again I had never experienced this using the other lot numbers.

Anyway, I was going to my nurse when I had one with an occlusion had occured and showed the seepage of insulin and blood actually on the white sticky stuff I showed her, and the bad markings I was getting. I also contacted accuchek. They said they would send me a new different lot number box, and some packaging to send back old sets. I got the new box to use, but never the packaging to send back the samples. So, I inadvertently left this box of sets in my cupboard with my new box.

Anyway, without realising it...my husband has got my sets out for me on an odd couple of occasions recently....and one of them was yesterday....at 6.30am this morning I had another occlusion. He had accidentally taken one from this old box. I have also had to keep upping my basals recently too to keep me level, but I though it was my body, and or the heat that had subsided but now I am almost positive but not 100% sure (99% isn't good enough for me) that I have accidentally been using the sets out of this box that I had previous problems with. Also, I have had bad markings when I removed them.

I only kept them in my cupboard because of two reasons,,,waiting for accucek to send me packaging to send samples back, and because I was unsure how to dispose of the rrest of the sets that I had left over from this particular batch that seemed to be causing me problems...

My questions are: have other persons had any problems with rapid d's and occlusions on a specific box?

I'm not wanting to be an alarmist, but I cannot see that my body only has rejected one single particular box. I have contacted accuchek today and made them aware again of me accidentally using this box, and having found my levels going up and having had to raise basals (before I had realised I had accidentally started to re-use this particular box) I have also emailed my nurse. Both of them are aware of waht the particular lot number is.

I was unsure of how to dispose of unused sets still in their packets, and I am still alarmed at being told today from accuchek that I could put them straight in to my normal rubbish, I thought that I would have had to take tem out of the packets and put them in to my big yellow sharps container...????

Anyway...thought I would let people know...

 

[jopar]

I don't use D-links but if you only get problems using this batch then yes for you at least this batch is iffy, might be just be done to the machine it came off at the manufacuters that's making the difference for you.. So may not be common to all..

As to throwing unused sets in the normal rubbish bin, not only are they still in there packaging, they are sterile has you haven't used them so don't come under bio-hazard so no need to dispose of as such...

 

[ebony321]

Hi,

I'm pretty sure I actually haven't had one single occlusion since using the Rapid-D's, the only occlusion i've had is from when i was using the flex link, which i put down to kinking issues.

I think it's quite odd that one box would cause those problems so i can see where your coming from.

When they re-called the flex link i told them on the phone that i still had two boxes. one of which was unopened, they said they would send me a prepaid post bag thingy so i could send them back. Which never came after two requests. So i gave up, i still have one unopened box which i plan to take to my diabetes clinic, the opened one like you said i took the cannulas out and put them in the sharps bin then got rid of the rest as rubbish.

I shall keep what you've said on board though in case i come across any problems with certain batches and be sure that i will definately report any issues if i do.

 

[josie38]

Hi donnelly,

Strange you should say that cuz i recently started to use rapid d's after i got an abcess with flexlink. I had my first occlusion tuesday morning so changed the set and everything was back to normal. Hopefully there wont be anymore!!


Josie

 

[donnellysdogs]

Gosh-to the abcess Josie, that must have been awful.

Did you report the occlusion? I did last time with all the occlusions that were happening with the flexlink +'s, but when I went 5 months on rapid d and got to the point of setting up another basal, and then occlusions, I thought I have got to report this-and of course I also saw seepage from the sets on 2 occasions.

I feel so silly because I thought to myself I know which box to go to which is the new box, and didn't give a thought that my husband getting me my sets, that he would go to the old box. (now out of way completely-3 sets kept back incase accuchek do want some back to test) and the rest have gone in my rubbish. I know I have had at least 3 from the old box, and have had to alter my basals so much, that today until this afternoon when I have swopped them to the lower basal profile I have had difficulty keeping my levels up again above 4.

Then with the occlusion this morning, and going to get my own set- I realised that hubby (bless him) has taken them from the old box. Then looking at the sites where I have taken the sets out recently some are really quite bad. My nurse told me to use my stomach more when I said to her abd showed her the markings on my legs from the box previously, so I did exactly what she said, and used my stomach more, this mornings removal of the set is really quite marked compared to normal. Normally to be quite honest, I whip the sets in and out so quickly because there are no marks at all, and nothing to ever look gross like I had with the ones from this particular box number....

Accuchek haven't phoned me back to say whether they want samples from the box, so I guess I will have to wait and see whether they send me packaging to return them??

It does un-nerve me slightly, as to how many other boxes of this lot number other people have, and whether they have had any problems-I don't know how accuchek do their lot numbering-do they make a 100 boxes, or 20 boxes or 5 boxes?- before resetting their machines and lot numbers. I know from when I was in food management I had to be very, very ,very careful of batch numbers being used and to be able to track them back to customers and recall the products if necessary-it was very, very tightly controlled.

I know that we can expect occlusions, and I hope Josie that yours is a one off, but it does worry me that the only occlusions I have had from these rapid d's are from this particular lot number.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Have intentioanlly kept the batch number out of the messages I have posted, but it appears that there is another person that has the same batch number as mine, and has also had problem. Done this by PM, so not to bandy around the lot number....I think that rapid d's are excellent, don't get me wrong...but occlusions are pretty rare with them, so worth notifying accuchek and getting the sets replaced if you do get an occlusion ....

 

[donnellysdogs]

I have also messaged accuchek via their website all the details that I have telephoned them regarding this lot number of sets and asking them whether they are going to contact patients with this lot particular lot number to let them know there may be problems....

 

[donnellysdogs]

Just to let you know that accuchek have sent me an email today, asking me to retrun the specific batch of rapid d's for testing to their head office with an offical log number and have also promised me feedback......