Omnipod or Medtronic 640G?

[J48]

I’ve been given the choice between the omnipod pump and the Medtronic 640G pump and I am struggling to decide on which one.
My diabetes nurse gave me a demo kit for the omnipod which I’ve stuck on my abdomen (I’ve had it on about 15 minutes) it’s giving me no issues so far but I haven’t really done anything other than sat on the sofa! I just thought I’d get some fellow pumpers opinions if possible please.

 

[HOBIE]

Welcome j48. Are you active at work ? I am an electrician doing rewires etc up &down ladders & under floors & would keep catching an omnipod. I have had my 640 for a couple of years now after more than 50 odd years of T1. I trust my Medtronc ! Good luck 😎

 

[J48]

Welcome j48. Are you active at work ? I am an electrician doing rewires etc up &down ladders & under floors & would keep catching an omnipod. I have had my 640 for a couple of years now after more than 50 odd years of T1. I trust my Medtronc ! Good luck 😎

Thank you for your response! I’m not really active at all at work, I work in an administration office. I feel like it’s such a massive decision to make, and I don’t want to make the wrong one! The omnipod is much smaller than I expected, I’ve had it on for a few hours now and I have barely noticed it there. How do you get on with the tube? Is it difficult to get used to constantly having it attached with a tube? Thanks for your help!

 

[HOBIE]

I worked in Cockney land for about two yrs . Brent cross, oxford st Bond st & in between. I used to play Rugby 🙂

 

[trophywench]

The vast majority of us found that bit of adaptation dead easy. Most blokes have big enough pockets in their trousers to house a pump dead comfy although if you wear skinny trousers its sometimes really not advisable cos when you sit down it can ride up and escape - esp if like me you've put on a bit of weight and are 'growing out' of them LOL but in which case when I can still wear them if I breathe in - there's still a waistband so with the various clips and pouches you can get you can easily hang em inside or outside the trousers, shorts or whatever. Speedos are obviously more difficult LOL You stuff all the spare length of tubing down the inside of the waistband and if you do find it escapes a lot and decides to meander round eg desk drawer handles or door handles etc, just use a bit of micropore to anchor the tubing wherever appropriate for that day's activities and where you've sited both ends of it, under the clothes ie usually to your skin somewhere.

It's not rocket science, any of it - just a bit of logic!

 

[SB2015]

I don’t use either of those pumps, but I do have one with tubing, and it really doesn’t bother me at all. I have the longer tubing so that I can just chuck the pump in bed and can turn over without it pulling at all.

I clip the pump on (I even made myself a rather nice clip in silver!!) and the tubing is tucked away out of sight. I have never pulled out the cannula , even though I have caught the tubing in a door handle in one occasion when in a dressing gown so it was exposed.

I don’t like the idea of the omnipod as I think it would annoy me having a lump stuck to me which I would find awkward during exercise classes where I am sometimes lying on y back or front or sides. Not a problem with cannulas as they sit flat against me and I don’t even notice where it is. The pump just hangs from its clip and moves where it needs to be. BUT I have never tried an Omnipod.

I hope that helps.

 

[HOBIE]

Thank you for your response! I’m not really active at all at work, I work in an administration office. I feel like it’s such a massive decision to make, and I don’t want to make the wrong one! The omnipod is much smaller than I expected, I’ve had it on for a few hours now and I have barely noticed it there. How do you get on with the tube? Is it difficult to get used to constantly having it attached with a tube? Thanks for your help!

Keep up the good work J48. Being active is good for you 😎

 

[J48]

Thanks all for your replies. I am still undecided, I am going to ask my diabetes nurse if I can trial the 640g as well. I think that’s the only true way I can decide on which is best!

 

[stephknits]

Hi, I have the omnipod, so can answer any questions on it. The positives for me are the fact that I don't have to take it off for a bath / shower / swim etc. I like to split my bolus and a have a shower after breakfast, so I would not want to take it off at that point. Just a minor thing obviously!
I don't notice it and often forget where I've stuck it!
Because I don't have to attach it to anything there is a greater choice of places to stick it.
A negative is that if you forget your handset when out then you can't make any adjustments on the actual pod - thus you can't bolus. It will keep on administering your background.
I love being a podder, but have not had and experience of any other pump. I think that you will be happy with whichever you go for - they are both great pieces of kit and essentially fulfill the same functions. I think we get quite attached to our particular pump (literally! ) and so will always say ours is the best - was worried about making the wrong decision, but of course will never know how it would have been if I had chosen the Medtronic instead!

 

[J48]

Thanks for your response. I quite like the omnipod but I am just not sure! I want to be 100% sure before committing to either one. Good news though, I have just spoken to my diabetes nurse and I am able to trial the 640. So hopefully that will give me more of an insight as to which one 🙂

 

[redshas]

Hi could you tell us how you came to a decision on this and update us as to how you got on? 🙂
I am currently in the same boat that's all and keen to gain as much advice as possible.

 

[Paulbreen]

I have the 670g and I would recommend it 100%, one place it excels is in bed, I just dump it beside me and then do a lot of thrashing around all night, (I’m not a peaceful sleeper according to my wife) I never feel it, it’s always still connected in the morning.

 

[redshas]

Unfortunately the 670 is not an option. But from a bed perspective am guessing very similar ;-)

 

[Paulbreen]

The pump is the same more or less, the 670 Is a CGM connected unit, I used it without the CGM sensor for a week at the beginning during my learning phase and even as a standard pump Meditronic technology is very good
Great for sleeping on lol!

 

[helli]

I have not had either pump but I have had a tubey and a tubeless pump.
My first was tubey and I never had problems with pulling out the cannula although it did tend to migrate under my hip bone in bed if I didn’t use a pump belt.
My biggest problem was, being slim, I found it difficult to hide the pump. Some women put their pump in their bra but that would make me rather lopsided (apologies if TMI) so it was usually clipped to my waist band. That’s great for trousers but not so good for dresses which I gave up with entirely whilst I had that pump.

My latest pump is tubeless. It is more discrete and I don’t have to worry about tethering it in bed or finding something to clip it to. I can wear dresses again.
However, the surface area that sticks to my body is bigger than a cannula. This means there is less choice where I can put it (I mentioned I was slim) without finding a curvy part or a boney part. But the bulge is not a problem at any time whether in bed, on the sofa, in the office or in the gym. In fact it is much more convenient than finding somewhere to clip my old tubey pump out of the way of my climbing harness.

Having tried tubed and tubeless, my preference is tubeless. But, if my choice was tubey or injections, I would take the tube.

 

[trophywench]

I tried a 'fake' Omnipod. It didn't stick out much it's true, but I still caught either my knicker elastic or the waistband of any trousers I wore on it, every time I went to the loo. Being mega shortwaisted, instead of having 3 sites either side of my navel, 3 on each leg and ditto my bum, the pod is so large that's don to only one site in each of those places. Bit restrictive though I could I spose have one site a fortnight on whichever arm my Libre isn't attached to. I reattached it with micropore to one side of my backside after I'd tried my belly and bloomin eck! They're painful, very hard indeed to lie on in bed, or on the back of the 3 piece suite or a dining room chair. So no ta - I'll have to go for another Combo I think.

 

[helli]

@trophywench there are other places you can put a pod such as above the waistband or in your "love handles around the back" (not IN your backside that you sit on but above it) so your knickers don't get caught on it.
However, a bit like having a Libre on the back of my arm and knowing to avoid doorposts, I soon got used to having a patch just below my waistband.

 

[trophywench]

There is less than an inch between my waist and belly button, great hollows on sides of belly above my pelvis, my ribcage is within an inch of my waist above that. You know 'just below waist', waistlines on trousers? They are well on my actual waist so have to wear a belt to keep them up, otherwise they make it difficult to walk with the crotch part dangling so low between my legs. I have lots of pockets of non absorbent me all over the place, meaning a cannula can only stay anywhere for a max of 2 days so with a minimum fill of 85u, I'd have to waste 40+ u of unused insulin every 2 days - plus can't insert a cannula into any places where there are seborrheic keratoses, of which I have literally at least hundreds if not a thousand by now, because of the keratoses' plentiful blood supplies - they bleed like a stuck pig if I catch one.