Hi, I wanted to see if there is anyone who could give me some info on kids and the pump. I have an 8 year old who developed diabetes almost 2 years ago. We have talked with the doctors and the diabetic educator. The only thing they tell me is that he is not ready. They say that since he is not able to draw the insulin out of the bottle himself, he is not ready to be on the pump. He seems to suffer from more highs, than lows, and has been in the hospital twice already from the highs. I am very concerned about the long term effects of these highs, which is why I am always asking them about the pump. Do any of you have any advice??
Thanks!

Hello
I was diagnosed when I was 8. I had to do everything for myself at that time. That included sterilizing the glass syringe and the stainless steel needle and sharpening it as well. I feel that it is possible for someone at that age to handle all of these responsibilities. If you want information about the pump for children I would recommend going to the MiniMed webpage http://www.minimed.com they have an entire section on youth. Read it all and contact them. If your child is not interested in caring for making his levels stay low at this time,you are dealing with a problem that the pump will not take care of until he wishes to be under control. I have been in DKA 6 times and it took me years to understand. So work with him and the people that can give you assistance. I am here as well. I am, on the pump as well. I hope this helps you be able to make some decisions Let me know if I can help in any other way. Others on this board are glad to assit you as well. We have a great family of concerned assistants with lots of experience.
Don http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Crazy Lady -
Don't let your doctors tell you that he's not ready for the pump just because he can't draw his own insulin. I know of several toddlers (yes, TODDLERS!)who are on the pump. One is only 2 1/2 years old! The pump is excellent for getting better blood glucose control for kids.

I had a CT scan today, and the technician naturally noticed my pump. She started telling me about her 4-year old nephew, who has just started on the pump!

[This message has been edited by SamQKitty (edited 10-01-2003).]

My son has tried very hard to keep his blood sugar levels normal. He is very in-tunned to his diabetes and knows when he is high or low and is very responsible about taking care of it. The times that he was in the hospital was the first time they diagnosed him with diabetes (this was after taking him to the doctor three days in a row and being told he just had a "bug"). The second time was a faulty monitor. I had checked it, took it to the doctor and had them check it, and the pharmacy. Every thing seemed fine, they said it was probably the "honeymoon phase". And it wasn't. So, he does not seem to have any emotional issues about being diabetic anymore (there were a few in the first few months).
But, where do I go and what do I do if all of the professionals are saying No, we will not let him have the pump? I live in a small town and there is only 1 pediatric office that takes our insurance. Even the diabetic specialist is saying No to us. If we could afford to pay it ourselves we would, but we are a family of 6 living on one income. Any ideas?
Thank you all for your advice!! http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

Hello OneCrazyLady

I believe the MiniMed website can help. They will tell all about youths on the pump. They will also work with you in obtaining the pump. Please read all they have and view their small movies. This page can help you a lot in making your decisions and in getting help to obtain the pump. My comments about not being ready only have to do with if he was not desiring to have the pump and follow instructions. But the pump can be controlled by you and can be made child safe. There is an abundance of information and assistance on the webpage. Please give it a try.
Don http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

One crazy lady,

My daughter and I both are on the paradigm pump from Medtronic Minimed. I was diagnosed with type one diabetes at the age of five and my daughter was at the age of one. I have always had problems of being too high. I have gone to a diabetic specialist nearly the entire time I have been a diabetic and although the doctor had mentioned the pumps he never told my parents how to go about getting one. My daughter, now nine, just a little over a year ago started going to her diabetic specialist at a children's hospital who mentioned the pump on our second visit, due to her high numbers.

Now since I have been a diabetic for so long, it seems, (21 years) I already knew to check her blood sugar several times a day and keep us up to date on new techniques and guidelines for controlling diabetes. Those things just didn't seem to help us. I knew how to adjust our insulin shots as well as count carbohydrates for our diet plan. Anyway, because of all of this her doctor said that we met all of the criteria for trying her on the pump. In fact, the list of criteria she gave us for their program mainly focused on checking blood sugars a minimum of four to six times a day and making sure that we didn't miss any appointments with her doctor.

Then, they gave us a list of pump companies and the different kinds of pumps. The list had the phone numbers (toll free) and their web addresses. We were told to call each of them, tell them a little about ourselves, like how many times a day we checked bloods, what they normally ran, how much insulin we took, how many shots we took and stuff like that. Then they told us all about their pumps, their features, disadvantages and advantages unique to each different kind of pump. They were very non pushy. They are told not to be. The final decesion is actually up to you and your needs, not their's.

After talking to four or five companies you decide which pump you would prefer and call that company back. They then take all the pertinent information and do all of the work for you. They contact your doctor to get the paperwork and the prescription so to speak. It's actually called a letter of medical necessity. They contact your insurance company and everything for you. We had no paper work to fill out for either one of us. The only thing I had to do was sign one or two papers to verify info they got from me and a release for them to speak to our doctor's and insurance company.

Within a week or so the company called me back and told me what the insurance company said, how much they would cover and how much we would owe for it. They are very expensive. Around 5-6,000 a piece, but very much worth it. My daughter's insurance paid for 100% of her's. My husband's and my insurance paid for 80% of mine. That left a bill of a little over one thousand dollars for us to pay. The pump company even set up payment arrangements for me based on what I said I could pay every month. They actually accepted my offer of $25.00 a month, much to my surprise.

After all of this, they then send you your pump and the supplies you need for it for at least a month or two depending on how your insurance company works. You cannot pick up the supplies you need for the pump at the local pharmacy. Then when you are getting close to running out you call the "to order supplies" number on the back of your pump and they do all of the work again and just send you the stuff.

Then you set up a time with the doctor or a pump nurse to learn all about the pump. How to figure out your insulin doses for food you eat, what insulin your body always needs weather you're eating anything that day at all or not, how to set up your pump, how to insert it, how to change it, and things like that.

I know that I am rambling, but let me tell you even if that isn't exactly how it goes for everyone any trouble you have would be very well worth it. My daughter was so excited.

The only reason I got mine was because the pump company was taking info on my daughter and it came up that I was also a diabetic so they took my info at the same time. Ended up that my daughter and I both hooked up to our pumps on the exact same day and time as each other. It was great. So, just so you know, my doctor didn't exactly get the ball rolling for me, but once the pump company found out that I wanted to try one, just hide and watch is how I felt. It was so great.

My A1C has come down from a 9.2 to a 6.5. The lab at my doc's has a range for 4.2-6.2. And my numbers came down that much in just three months. We got on our pumps on May 27, 2003. My doc appt before that with the a1c of 9.2 was on May 22 and my next one where it was 6.5 was on August 11,2003. So I guess I didn't have to wait a whole three months even. Both my daughter and I feel tremendously better.

I know about your fears of the long term complications. Because I was so out of control for so long I now have neuropathy and other bad things going on. If I could have gotten on the pump earlier, I would have. The complications can be terrible.

I'm not sure if I can give the phone numbers for the pump companies or not so I won't, but I'm sure they would have them on their web sites so just do a search for insulin pumps and sooner than you know it, you will be well on your way to making things so much easier and better for your child.

If you have any questions, just feel free to ask me or anyone here. I'm positive that if anyone has any advice or info they will be sure to share. And they probably won't take up as much of your time as I have. Just got going for a bit I guess. Sorry about that.

Good luck,

Bubsmom

Ok, I feel so much better now! I am heading over to the MiniMed website, but before I did, I wanted to say thank you so much! Everyone here has had such great advice, and sharing your personal experiences with me makes me feel like I am not alone! Thank you all again! http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

I just thought of one more thing...perhaps the Minimed reps can do an "in-service" at your pediatrician and diabetes specialist's office regarding the pumps for children? An "in-service" is where the company sets up an educational seminar for the doctors/nurses/physican's assistants, etc. to teach and train them on what they need to know regarding the pump. You may want to ask Minimed if they would consider working on this for your area.