I have used MiniMed pumps for over 10 years and I've always been happy with them, but never really explored any other options (since there weren't that many when I started out!) The range of pumps available now is incredible, and I really don't know much about what's out there.
I'm interested to hear from other pump users what they see as the pros and cons of their pumps, and why they use the model they do.
I'll start: I have a Paradigm 722 and I like that it is user-friendly and very intuitive to use. It has all the features that I need, like square wave, etc., and I like the Guardian CGM and how it interfaces with the pump. The tubing gets in my way sometimes, but I'm used to it at this point.
I have the Animas Ping. I love how easy it is to use. I use the meter remote from time to time to bolus which is nice. My fav thing though is the audio bolus function. I can go days without pulling my pump out of my pocket.
I have the animas ping and I LOVE the meter/remote. I use it for 99% of my boluses, its so nice to be able to just keep my pump in my pocket and bolus right from the meter after I check my blood sugar. I also love that my pump is pink =)
We just started the Animas Ping for my 4 yr old son last Thursday. I LOVE IT! He has only gone low once since we started and on shots, hypos were usually a daily occurrence!
The meter remote is great - since we can just walk near him and "buzz him". He calls it that because it vibrates when it delivers the insulin. We don't have to take his pump out of his pocket or stop him from playing. It is also wonderful because we can give such tiny doses instead of the 0.5 unit increments we were limited to before, so I feel like he is swinging from high to low a lot less.
That is so nice to hear! Diabetes is already so difficult to live with, so if his pump helps him to see the disease in a little bit less of an evil way, that's great!
I am looking into a pump for my granddaughter Alana, age 29 months. Glad to hear that your son loves his. Does he play with it alot, I mean with the tubing or does he try to pull it out? I think we should wait til she is 3, but I just hate that she takes anywhere from 4-7 shots a day! Her A1C was 9.1 last week.
Also, do you (or anyone else) know if the Omnipod is the only wireless pump available?
My son uses the OmniPod. The main reason he chose this pump is because it is waterproof. He can continue to swim for hours and hours without any problems with the pod. He also loves that it is tubeless.
I am looking into a pump for my granddaughter Alana, age 29 months. Glad to hear that your son loves his. Does he play with it alot, I mean with the tubing or does he try to pull it out? I think we should wait til she is 3, but I just hate that she takes anywhere from 4-7 shots a day! Her A1C was 9.1 last week.
Also, do you (or anyone else) know if the Omnipod is the only wireless pump available?
Take care and hope to hear from you soon.
Lori
Waiting 4 the Cure
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He does not play with it at all. And fortunately his 22 mos sister doesn't either. We have just been sticking it in the pocket of his pants (clipped in place) or clipping it to the collar of his shirt in the back. The latter is easier for him to be able to go to the bathroom by himself - if you forget - then you get the yelled "MO-OM! Can you come hold my pump?" Lol. I am going to be looking for a pump pack that will just stay around his waist all the time.
He does not like if the tubing gets tugged - he says "Ouch, you hurt me." (But very calmly, so I don't think it hurts that bad.) I would encourage you to look into it now - the part I love the best is that he has had so few lows since starting on the pump 3 weeks ago. We used to struggle almost daily with them before - just couldn't get those doses small enough with the syringes.
The only downside so far is the site changes - he HATES them. The last one was a little better, less kicking, but still a lot of frantic screaming. This was how he started on shots too, so I am hopeful that a few more weeks and he will be better about the site changes. Especially, as I am getting faster at them too.
My son was diagnosed in March '09, just after his second birthday. We put him on the Animas Ping in late August (at age 31 mo). He did fantastic! My daughters ages 4 and 5 were wonderful with it. It took him months to take it out of his pocket and even so he has no idea how to undo the lock feature. He keeps it in his cargo pants pocket, his favorite place. He is very proud of "his pump". We explained who is allowed to touch the pump and who is not. He (and my girls) have been taught to call us if the tubing gets caught on anything, an alarm goes off, or it falls out of his pocket. He has "snagged the tubing" a few times but never to the point that it bothered the site.
He went from a 8.9 A1C to a 8.0 and this was only being on pump for half of the three months! It was a miracle for us to go from the multiple shots each day (sometimes having to hold him down) to standing behind him while he plays and pumping him. We just warn him that his pump is going to "tickle" him now. The Ping remote is AMAZING!
Check the size on the Omni Pod. I think they may be a little large for those tiny bodies.
I have a 522 paradigm, and I set the alarm to remind me to test Bloodsugars and take vitamins. I disllike the font size @ the very top of the screen. It's too small. The tubing sometimes get tangled. Other then that I love it. Last, sometimes the tape leaves scars.
There have been some issues with the E Z Manager. I am running windows vista but after loading and trying to follow those really lame instructions I got : "UNABLE TO FIND PUMP". I double checked to make sure the drop down box said Ping but still nothing. I next tried using my meter and did the same thing and it told me it could not find the meter. I called Animas and they have no one on weekends just M-F 8-5 pm.
I downloaded the driver for Vista and it seemed to be working but then I got a yes /no on something and it would not let me answer Yes - the correct answer I wanted so I clicked no and it started uninstalling the Vista driver. Did that about a dozen times and uninstalled the softwae and instaled and then gave up until Monday. The instrucitons as I said were really bad - it doesn't tell you what you need to do very well. I was supposed to reach an instruction that told me when to plug in the USB port for the Infared Transmitter but never got that. The transmitter when plugged in the USB port will go green for a second and then beep but doesn't stay on. I am not sure what order I needed to plug it in but its frustrating to have to wait. Otherwise, it look like the ideal software I am looking for. I have the Ultrasmart and that was a breeze to work with - .