What pump do you have and what are the pros and cons of it?

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Hiya Michaela,

I've got a Minimed Medtronic Paradigm 754.
(In purple)

Pros
- It's very easy to use!
- It does a nice little beep if you forget to finish programming your bolus - very handy!
- I love how precise the basal rates can be. Mine is almost perfect at the moment, helpful for when I can't be bothered eating.
- It looks like a 1980s pager 😎

Cons
- The infusion sets seem to fail about 10% of the time.
- The harsh green background light is a bit industrial
- The wee belt clip they give you with it isn't the strongest. Mine breaks once a year. (But I am forever clipping it to places constantly)
- It doesn't come in green!!! 😡

It's the only type of pump I've used so I can't compare.
I love it though!

What type do you have? Or are you looking to get one?
 
We have the Accu Chek Combo.

Pros: love the flexibility which a pump gives you, bolus size and basal rate can be varied almost infinitely (would be the same for any pump)
Love the remote control handset/test kit - makes bolusing extremely easy, no need to fish the pump out from under your clothes
315ml cartridge which I think is larger than some (although actually we never need to fill it completely)
If you mislay the handset you can still do most of the functions directly on the pump

Cons: hard work to get it set up and running correctly, and needs constant tweaking (same for any pump)
Doesn't work with a CGM
Don't really see why it needs to set off a noisy alarm just to tell you that a temp basal has ended!
Not waterproof so must remove it for swimming and water sports

Can't think of anything else at the moment. Again it's the only pump we've had so can't really compare with others!
 
I'm using the Animas vibe.

Pros
Reasonable size and shape, I've found it pretty easy to fit in pockets or somewhere with most outfits.
Seems easy to use
Display screen is pretty clear (indoors, see cons)
Waterproof, having killed a meter getting it soaked on a camping trip I liked thie idea of waterproof.
All functionality is on the pump. While I like the idea of a remote I tend to keep meters in my car/handbag/bedside table etc so the idea that I would have one meter which I have to remember ot take everywhere was of putting

I also like the idea that I could at some point in the future use it with a CGM

Cons
Screen is difficult to read in strong sunlight.
There is a lot of scrolling through menu options for some of the less used features
I don't find the alarms very loud, they don't wake me up.

Lack of a remote was something I considered, it does sound handy to be able to keep the pump under clothing without needing access but in the end having all functionality on the pump seemed to suit me better and I haven't really missed a remote.
 
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Another for the cons list, the belt clip which was supplied is not much use.

Mine became wobbly after around a month of use.
 
Same pump as Miss Melissa.
One more con - the alarms are far to quiet and it often bleeps for ages without me hearing it.

A pro for me is different to Miss Melissa in that my sets never fail and neither do I have problems with air bubbles in the reservoir (which a lot of others using different pumps seem to have). That's a biggy for me and I wouldn't readily change my pump at the moment as I really like it.
 
Hello, I'm a Viber too, absolutely luv it :D and agree with all that LaughingHyena says. I also decided it would be better for me personally to have a pump which I would access directly, I didn't want a separate remote with integrated blood meter. Also needed a big clear screen as I've had quite a lot of laser.


LaughingHyena said:
Another for the cons list, the belt clip which was supplied is not much use.

Mine became wobbly after around a month of use.
Click to expand...


Re belt clip - it's supposedly much better than any of the other pump clips, I've heard people say..think you may have had a dud?? I have the clip permanently fixed on mine but wear the pump in a SpiBelt during the day, and loose in bed, but clipped on jeans, underwear etc when lounging around at home i.e. It gets clipped on (& unclipped) every day a few times though I guess not as much as if I wore it clipped on all the time. Maybe? Anyway, yours should've lasted a lot longer than a month..do try asking Animas for free replacement(s), they were fine when I did about a year ago & sent a couple.

I personally have all my alerts/alarms set to silent or vibrate but agree in general the sound is not loud enough.

A little niggle - when using temp basal, it would be useful to have the actual amount displayed on the home screen rather than the % change! and also if you want to say extend your temp basal by another 1/2 hour (or whatever) or say increase it from 30% to 50%, you have to go through a few button presses to CANCEL what's already running, then go back in & through the whole process of setting up a new one. I believe it's simpler to adjust temp basals on the other pumps. Minor niggles really in the scheme of things, and probably won't make any sense yet to anyone who hasn't started pumping yet!

Interestingly, altho I find the Vibe to be a neat shape and size, it's actually the biggest of the 3 tubed pumps! The Combo & Veo are smaller & neater to tuck in certain pockets/spaces. Was surprised to discover this recently.
 
LaughingHyena said:
Another for the cons list, the belt clip which was supplied is not much use.

Mine became wobbly after around a month of use.
Click to expand...

Ask for a replacement. Animas sent me a couple of extras. Super glue is a wonderful invention as well 🙂
 
I also use the Paradigm 754.........

I believe this model is the larger 3.0ml one, needed for those of use with larger insulin needs.....

I love it, so cant really list PROS as it does everything I could possible want from it.....

Never had any issues with reservoirs or cannulas being kinked etc........I have went through a few belt clips though.......

and also the battery cover seems to work best with a 1p coin, anything else I have found damages the slot as its only plastic......

the good thing is you can order new battery covers form the medtronic online shop, for free...

I never had a choice of pump, so I don't know whether I would have chosen a different one.......

I quite fancy the omnipod though.....
 
Hmm, maybe I did have a dud clip. It still fastens into the pump OK, and on to my trousers, but the weld between the two parts is loose so the pump doesn't feel secure.

I will mention it when I next ring for supplies, ad hope they will send me a replacement. It was very handy to have, even if just to clip the pump to my PJs first thing in the morning.

During the day I tend to either use a spiBelt, or tuck the pump in my bra. Baby scratch mittens make great pump socks. I've found ASDAs seem to fit the vibe best.
 
Mine is a Medtronic Veo. After 48 yrs at being T1 I think pumps are great. You are in charge & not so much Bg. Might be a bit hard work at the start but worth it. Cant fault Medtronic & there staff/service ctr etc. No big problems with kit at all. Must be more than 7 years since had an injection with insulin & not missing that one bit & had that in the glass syringe days with "panel pin" needles.
 
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Medtroinc Pump

My son has a Medtronic pump. We didn't have much choice, I think it was either that one or the Accuchek which I gather are much of a muchness but we went for the Medtronic as that's what his diabetic team are most familiar with.

Going by other comments - I would agree the pouch you get with it isn't great so we got a Spibelt which is much better, You can also get a waterproof belt from Funky Pumpers if you want to wear it during watersports.

The main issue we had was problems with the standard canula set you start off on and we had to go to a steel one which we found much better.

Having said all of that if I were looking for a new pump now, I'd also consider the Omnipod. The problem with the Medtronic and Accuchek is that the pump is connected to the canula by a tube. My son is quite skinny so the only place he can really have the canula is around his bottom. If he ends of sleeping on it or sits on it for a long time we've found it can affect the readings. With the Omnipod he could have the insulin pod in different places like arms etc. However at this moment the diabetic team said they wouldn't advise it in his case as they can't support it. Next time he gets a new pump things may have changed.
 
Omnipod Pump

Hi Michaela98,

My son is now almost 17 and will have had the Omnipod for 2 years in April 2015, he has found it to be really good, it is discreet with the hand held PDA that is blue tooth much better than multiple injections. The only down side is the pods that adhere to the skin can alarm for various reasons the usual one is blocked cannula and possibly the size of the PDA it is like carrying two mobile phones instead of one but other than that its an all round excellent piece of equipment for a T1 Diabetic.:D
 
I would stick with the one your Diabetic team are used to. They know which buttons to press. I got my pump more than 7 years ago. I was on the phone to my Diabetic nurse & with instructions from her adjusted pump. That was me on mobile in van (stopped) Bluetooth through phone. Leaps & bounds better than Injections 🙂
 
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