I've been T1 for 31 years and today I finally got my diabetes team to apply for funding for a pump. They won't fund a closed loop, but as technology moves fast and I believe the pump you have for at least 5 years I want to chose the best one based from those available. I've been told either Tslim, Medtronic or Dana. Can anyone give pros and cons to help me decide which one to go for. I don't know if I'm limited to certain models or not. Thanks
-
Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
-
Learn more about joining the Diabetes UK Support Forum team here: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/volunteering-opportunities-why-dont-you-join-us.112862/
Chosing a pump
- Thread starter Noelle
- Start date
- Status
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome to the forum
WooHoo! Congrats on getting the nod for a pump! It sounds like the 3 on offer are all pretty good and we have members who speak highly of all 3 so it may be a question of thinking what is important to you with a pump and where you plan to locate it on your body/clothing and if you want to use your phone to control it or have to fish the pump out to bolus etc.
I think it might be useful to find out which models are available if you are interested in looping. I think the slightly older model Medtronic (670?) isn't compatible but the 780 is. I know @Inka has the Dana RS and loves it but doesn't loop but it may be the most flexible one as regards sensors to loop it with. @SB2015 is looping with the Medtronic 780 and Guardian sensors (self funded) and is getting great results and @everydayupsanddowns is looping with the Tslim and Dexcom and really rates it!
Hopefully they will be able to give you more info on each.
WooHoo! Congrats on getting the nod for a pump! It sounds like the 3 on offer are all pretty good and we have members who speak highly of all 3 so it may be a question of thinking what is important to you with a pump and where you plan to locate it on your body/clothing and if you want to use your phone to control it or have to fish the pump out to bolus etc.
I think it might be useful to find out which models are available if you are interested in looping. I think the slightly older model Medtronic (670?) isn't compatible but the 780 is. I know @Inka has the Dana RS and loves it but doesn't loop but it may be the most flexible one as regards sensors to loop it with. @SB2015 is looping with the Medtronic 780 and Guardian sensors (self funded) and is getting great results and @everydayupsanddowns is looping with the Tslim and Dexcom and really rates it!
Hopefully they will be able to give you more info on each.
Bruce Stephens
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
They'll be more likely to later this year, presuming the guidelines are updated as proposed (making CGMs (rt or is) recommended for everyone with Type 1). So it completely makes sense to try to choose one now which can be looped in the near future.
Pumper_Sue
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hello and welcome to the forum.
Have a look at each manufacturers website to see what is available. If you want to loop then the medronic pumps have their own sensors.
Which ever pump you go for you will love it as you have nothing to compare it with other users will say what they like or dislike about their pumps 🙂
To start with pumping can be a tad frustrating as it like starting all over again so you will have a love hate relationship to start with 🙂
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Welcome @Noelle 🙂 Your pros and cons will be individual to you because you’ll have your own priorities about what’s important. I spent ages researching my new pump (I’ve been pumping for many years) and I chose the Dana RS.
Write down the specs of each pump and circle anything extra-good or extra-bad. Think about your priorities and how you live your life eg I rejected the T Slim because it needed recharging. I knew that would drive me mad and not fit my life. Yet it might not be an issue for you. Look at the selection of sets and cannulas too. You want a good choice - Teflon, steel, straight-in, angled, different cannula lengths, etc etc. Then look at the customer service. Medtronic’s customer service was one of the reasons I rejected that pump.
Google for pump reviews, look at reviews on YouTube so you can see the pumps in the wild. Research thoroughly and systematically. The best pump is the one that’s right for you.
I love my Dana. I don’t have a CGM but I’m happy that I could loop with it if I wanted to. It’s a robust, neat pump with an excellent range of cannulas and it’s been very reliable. I’m happy I chose it and will probably choose it again as my next pump.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
I second what @Pumper_Sue says, in that there really isn’t a bad first choice of pump, because once you’ve got up to speed (and pushed through any frustrations and nerviness) any pump will give you many of the same benefits of accurate dosing, flexible basal profiles, temporary basal rates and all that.
Tandem has an emulator app for your smartphone which allows you to play with the settings and menus to see how things are laid out.
Fire away with any questions 🙂
Tandem has an emulator app for your smartphone which allows you to play with the settings and menus to see how things are laid out.
Fire away with any questions 🙂
Hi, thank you everyone for your responses. Some really important things to think about, and it seems they all the pros and cons, but overall I'm very excited about getting a pump. One question I have is that I currently have a Libre 2, and I've heard that Libre 3 is on its way. Does anyone know which pump, if any, will work with the Libre 3? Also, it is likely that Dexcom will be available as easily as Libre 3 (if and when it becomes available) or is it just a case of wait and see? If so, then I should consider a pump compatible with either Libre 3 or Dexcom.
I think the Tslim is the only pump that will be compatible with Libre 3, but I hope I'm wrong.
I like the idea of being able to control my pump from my phone, so, for instance if out and about and wearing a dress I would like to be able to bolus without having to get to the pump.
Are they all similar in terms of filling the pump with insulin?
I have asked my diabetes nurse to confirm which Medtronic model I can get. Will the Medtronic 780 loop with Dexcom as well as their own sensors?
Many thanks everyone
I think the Tslim is the only pump that will be compatible with Libre 3, but I hope I'm wrong.
I like the idea of being able to control my pump from my phone, so, for instance if out and about and wearing a dress I would like to be able to bolus without having to get to the pump.
Are they all similar in terms of filling the pump with insulin?
I have asked my diabetes nurse to confirm which Medtronic model I can get. Will the Medtronic 780 loop with Dexcom as well as their own sensors?
Many thanks everyone
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
I don’t know about Libre 3 but someone at my clinic looped with the Dana and an earlier Libre plus MiaoMiao. Others used Dexcom. I haven’t been to my clinic in person since Covid so I haven’t seen them recently.
My Dana uses a phone app and I only need to get my pump out to change sets and cartridges. I bolus from my phone, change basal from it, do a temp basal rate, etc. It’s very convenient when out and about.
My Dana uses a phone app and I only need to get my pump out to change sets and cartridges. I bolus from my phone, change basal from it, do a temp basal rate, etc. It’s very convenient when out and about.
Pumper_Sue
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Sorry no it wont
SB2015
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi @Noelle
My 780 will only loop with the Medtronic Guardian sensors. I know the tslim will loop with Dexcom, whic there are rumours of becoming available on NHS ‘soon’.
Whichever pump you choose, there will be a transition of getting used to it, which is frustrating, but it is well worth it. With the adjustments to basal rates in an hourly or half hourly basis you can the pump to match what you need when you need it a lot more closely. The ability to deliver your bank uses in different ways over a period of time that you choose also helps to take care of foods that are very fatty. Being able to turn your basal up or down makes exercise a lot easier, …
And then there is the even bigger improvement once you get round looping, and allowing the pump to take on a lot of what you were doing, although not all.
Choosing one with the facility to loop is definitely a good plan, as you will have the pump for a few years. Some as they are managed through an app on your phone can be updated during the contract, mine isn’t one of those, but four/five years passes very quickly in the pump world and things are changing so fast now.
Happy to answer questions about 780 if you go for that one (I did not have the option of a tslim at the timeof choosing)
My 780 will only loop with the Medtronic Guardian sensors. I know the tslim will loop with Dexcom, whic there are rumours of becoming available on NHS ‘soon’.
Whichever pump you choose, there will be a transition of getting used to it, which is frustrating, but it is well worth it. With the adjustments to basal rates in an hourly or half hourly basis you can the pump to match what you need when you need it a lot more closely. The ability to deliver your bank uses in different ways over a period of time that you choose also helps to take care of foods that are very fatty. Being able to turn your basal up or down makes exercise a lot easier, …
And then there is the even bigger improvement once you get round looping, and allowing the pump to take on a lot of what you were doing, although not all.
Choosing one with the facility to loop is definitely a good plan, as you will have the pump for a few years. Some as they are managed through an app on your phone can be updated during the contract, mine isn’t one of those, but four/five years passes very quickly in the pump world and things are changing so fast now.
Happy to answer questions about 780 if you go for that one (I did not have the option of a tslim at the timeof choosing)
I’ve been Type 1 for 65 years, on Medtronic pumps for about 22(?) and I’m on NHS Medtronic CGMs because I lost all hypo awareness when they changed insulin from beef to science labs. I used to find their CGM appallingly inaccurate, until I stuck it on my outer thigh, where it is pretty good nearly all the time. I have continued with Medtronic because it automatically shuts off when your BG is below 3.6 or whatever you set it at.
Before I had such irregular BGs and useless CGM results that I had to do about 8-9 blood tests a day and finally persuaded my GP to prescribe them. Before the Medtronic pump changed to an automatic insulin cut-off pump, I had two or three nightmare hypos at night each week. Fighting my poor wife to stop her treating the hypo, bed drenched in sweat. The difference with automatic cut-off and alarming has changed both our lives immeasurably. I don’t know how (or why) she put up with it. I’ve had 640G pumps for the last 6 years now with a type 3 transmitter. My diabetes is still fairly irregular with wildly different BG readings with identical carbs, exercise and mood for no reason, but I now test BG only 4-5. times a day. I’ve still got all my bits and do a lot of allotment work plus Irish set dancing and a choir.
Has anyone used the newer models that give extra insulin on high BG levels? They sound fantastic, but do they drive you crazy with putting carb values and everything else? I do all that automatically myself. I help myself to what I think is the right amount of carb for the insulin I’ve taken. It more or less works out.
Once you get used to pumps, wearing them, changing them, dealing with them, they are marvelous and you will look back very pleased you got over detesting the idea of having something stuck into you all the time
Before I had such irregular BGs and useless CGM results that I had to do about 8-9 blood tests a day and finally persuaded my GP to prescribe them. Before the Medtronic pump changed to an automatic insulin cut-off pump, I had two or three nightmare hypos at night each week. Fighting my poor wife to stop her treating the hypo, bed drenched in sweat. The difference with automatic cut-off and alarming has changed both our lives immeasurably. I don’t know how (or why) she put up with it. I’ve had 640G pumps for the last 6 years now with a type 3 transmitter. My diabetes is still fairly irregular with wildly different BG readings with identical carbs, exercise and mood for no reason, but I now test BG only 4-5. times a day. I’ve still got all my bits and do a lot of allotment work plus Irish set dancing and a choir.
Has anyone used the newer models that give extra insulin on high BG levels? They sound fantastic, but do they drive you crazy with putting carb values and everything else? I do all that automatically myself. I help myself to what I think is the right amount of carb for the insulin I’ve taken. It more or less works out.
Once you get used to pumps, wearing them, changing them, dealing with them, they are marvelous and you will look back very pleased you got over detesting the idea of having something stuck into you all the time
- Status