Any Experience with the OmniPod?

[Gdad]

My DD8 was diagnosed with Type-1 Diabetes last October and since then has been doing very well on NPH with regular injections. She wants to try the OmniPod and her Endocrinologist said over summer vacation is the best time to make the move while she is out of school. Makes sense to me- so in the next few weeks we will be switching to a different Insulin to get ready and then if all goes well adding the pod in June.

So any other OmniPod users out there?
Do you like it?
Was it a big deal to switch over?

Thanks for any insight.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

You might want to try going to a diabetes forum. The two I go to that have lots of pod people are:

www.diabetesforums.com/forum

and

www.diabetesdaily.com/forum

I don't use it, but have followed many of those posts with great interest as pumping may be in my future pretty soon. Unfortunately, quite a few people have had lots of problems with the pods. Occlusions seem to be a big issue with it. Many have experienced multiple pod failures, had the pod rip off (and you can't just stick it back on, you need a new pod). A lot of people have also had serious issues with abnormally high blood sugars after changing Pods. I would say that at least half of the people who started it and were singing its praises ended up sending it back and going back to MDI or switching to a traditional pump. (At least those who posted about it). It seems like there are a lot of issues with the Pod that need to be worked out.

You can order a free demo pod from their website. I tried it out of sheer curiosity and it wasn't bad at all, but it didn't have the cannula or anything else. I was contacted by a rep to see if I wanted to demo a real one and experience the insertion and everything, but declined as I am not to that point yet. You can contact them and ask them to try. The other issue I've heard people talk about is that if you forget the PDM you can't do anything, all it will do is give you your basal, unlike a traditional pump which you can program from the pump itself.

That's not to say I haven't read some pretty positive experiences, but it seems like the people who liked it the most were those who had never used a pump before, and that the initial love quickly fades. Based on others' experiences I would be kind of leery of switching to it until they get the problems worked out.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Here are some specific threads that have some reviews:

http://www.diabetesdaily.com/forum/insulin-pumps/25375-omnipod-issues

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/pumping-insulin/19361-the-omnipod-experience.html

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/pumping-insulin/37742-so-i-really-do.html

http://www.diabetesdaily.com/forum/insulin-pumps/24734-omni-pod

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/pumping-insulin/38237-animas-ping-vs-omnipod.html

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/pumping-insulin/38018-omnipod-issues-need-advice.html

http://www.diabetesdaily.com/forum/insulin-pumps/24820-new-omnipod-user-needs-some-help-pls

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/pumping-insulin/38030-curious-about-omnipod.html

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/pumping-insulin/37874-giving-up-on-omnipod.html

You'll see a mix of positive and negative reviews. Out of curiosity, have you looked at any other pumps? I have several friends who use the Minimed Paradigm and really like it. I'm pretty sure that if you talk to them all companies will let you test drive them (I think you fill it with saline). It might not be a bad idea to test drive a couple of different things. Maybe the Pod and a traditional pump that appeals to you. Many people find that the tubing isn't as big a deal as they thought it was. You can weigh all the information and see what works best for your daughter.

ETA: Most of these people are adults. You may want to check out the Children With Diabetes forum to see how it works with kids.

 

[PapillonMom]

Hi,
I was just recommending the omnipod to another user on another thread and decided to do a search for it.

I have been on the omnipod for almost 3 years and LOVE IT!!! I was on two other pumps before this one and absolutely love the freedom of a tubeless pump. It does have a learning curve. In the first 6 months I had knocked off a few and had a few other issues but since then have been very, very happy.

They have been super nice about sending me replacements for any that have had an error. I especially love that the PDM (the remote) has the meter built in and tracks and logs all your data.

I am a teacher during the school year and ran a summer camp for the last 2 summers (this summer I am off- ) I wore the pod swimming, on field trips and while playing very physical games. I only knocked my pod off once in both of those summers (during tug-a-war). I have hit it on a desk or door once or twice but not often. I have found that wearing the pod on my thigh works best for me.

If you have any other questions please let me know. I know how scary it can be when making a big decision.