I guess I should review the Diabetes Forecast magazine more closely—it sometimes has something kinda cool.
Reading the January 2011 Consumer Guide I saw this little gadget that is probably a great idea for some kids—it’s called the (cue sci-fi music) INSUFLON. It’s like a little insulin port—you stick a catheter in every three days and deliver insulin through the port instead of giving injections.
Not as many shots/needles as syringes, not as accessible as a pump for little fingers. It may just be a great fit for some kids.
(And, according to their website, a great option for some adults as well!)
Checking their web page, I of course saw something that raised a bit of a flag: they said that the INSUFLON was designed to help kids and their families come to terms with their diabetes.
I don’t know about you, but the injections were and are not what I need to come to terms with when it comes to living with type one! Sure, it’s a critical and essential piece, but if that’s all you think you need to worry about, boy do you have a lot to learn.
(The I-Port injection port claims on its website it will mean better compliance with medications. Um, I’m not so sure that the injections are the hard part of the diabetes equation here. Am I the only one who thinks this? They may be the plainest and simplest visible difficulty, but I assure you there is more going on than someone scared of needles. Teensy kids excluded from this possibly unfair generalization.)
There are other “insulin ports” out there, but the INSUFLON goes in at a 20-45 degree angle, as opposed to the 90 degree angle required by the I-Port Injection Port.
Not to mention the INSUFLON has much better sound effects when you use its cool name.
(I can’t even type it without hearing the cool sound effects!)
