Insulin Delivery Devices

Traditionally, most people have used syringes to inject insulin. Newer devices can deliver insulin more consistently or more in sync with your body's needs. Newer devices include:

• insulin pens
• insulin jet injectors
• external insulin pumps
• implantable insulin pumps
• insulin patch
• insulin infusers

Insulin Pens

Resembling a fountain pen, insulin pens come loaded with cartridges that carry 100 to 200 units of insulin. Some pens allow you to change the cartridge. Others come preloaded with insulin and are discarded after the insulin is used.

Who might benefit: If you need to take multiple doses of insulin every day and need to carry insulin with you, you may want to consider an insulin pen.

How to use it: The tip of the pen is sometimes equipped with a thin, short needle. For prefilled pens, you need to change needles. Turn a small dial on the pen to select the dose, and press a plunger on the end of the pen to inject the insulin just under the skin.

Insulin Jet Injectors

These devices look like a large pen, but they do not use needles. They send a fine spray of insulin through the skin using a blast of high-pressured air. Insulin jet injectors tend to be costly. Be sure to try out several models, and talk with your diabetes educator about recommendations before purchasing one.

External Insulin Pumps

About the size of a pager or beeper, external insulin pumps are worn outside the body on a belt or carried in a pocket. They attach to the body through a thin, flexible plastic tube that is attached to a needle. The needle is inserted just under the skin near the abdomen and taped in place. In the newer products, the needle is removed and a soft catheter remains in place. The catheter needs to be changed every 2 to 3 days.

Who might benefit: Insulin pumps avoid the need for daily insulin shots and deliver insulin in a way that is closer to normal than injections. They also allow more flexibility in terms of daily meal and activity schedules. External insulin pumps have a cartridge that contains insulin. You can set the pump to deliver a steady, continuous flow of insulin. Most pumps allow this level to be adjusted to meet your body's specific needs. You also inject insulin at mealtimes based on the food you eat and other times when blood glucose levels are higher. External insulin pumps can benefit anyone who wants or needs flexibility with their insulin.

Things to consider: External insulin pump cartridges, needles, and tubing must be changed every 2 to 3 days. If you use an external pump, you need to monitor your blood glucose levels frequently to determine how much insulin you need.

Implantable Insulin Pumps

Still under development, implantable insulin pumps are usually surgically placed on the left side of the abdomen. The disk-shaped pump, which weighs 6 to 8 ounces, continuously delivers insulin. The pump is refilled every few weeks by injecting insulin into the pump's reservoir. Larger insulin doses can be delivered by using a handheld device that instructs the pump to deliver a specified dose of insulin. In addition to the advantage of being needleless, implantable insulin pumps can deliver insulin directly to the liver, which prevents the liver from producing excess glucose.

Insulin Patch

Still under development, the insulin patch delivers a steady low-dose stream of insulin through a patch placed on the skin. To get a larger dose of insulin at meals and other times, users can pull a tab on the patch to deliver a bigger dose. Also under development is nasal insulin, which is taken using devices similar to asthma inhalers.

Insulin Infusers

Infusers create portals into which you inject insulin. A needle is inserted into tissues under the skin, usually on the abdomen, and remains taped in place for 48 to 72 hours. The insulin is injected into this needle, rather than directly through the skin into the fatty tissue. Some people are prone to infections with this type of product.