How many pumpers or non-pumpers are using Apidra?

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Permalink Reply by Karen Doering on October 21, 2007 at 6:06pm

I am using humalog in my pump. It will be interesting to hear how you like it or how different /better it is for you than Novalog. Why is Novalog not consistent? Had you heard that before?

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Permalink Reply by Dave on October 21, 2007 at 8:40pm

Apidra has a more rapid onset and shorter duration of action. Don't get me wrong Novalog is an excellent insulin. I will write more after I have experienced it and can inform based on first hand experience.

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Permalink Reply by Chris Bishop on October 22, 2007 at 6:24am

I have been on Apidra for almost a month now and I love it. I am still on shots (for the moment) but it gives me much better results. I can tell a difference in the time it take to kick in and when it trails off. I think my sugars have dropped on average about 15 points (which is great for me.) I am so glad to be on Apidra now. I don't suggest it for anyone who is not managing their sugars very well because it is so rapid acting and its short duration. I test before a meal, give my shot and 2 hours after and it has kept my sugars very consistent.

2 thumbs up for Apidra

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Permalink Reply by Dave on October 22, 2007 at 7:19am

I have to agree not even being on Apidra for 24 hours yet but it works quick, it actually makes the Novalog seem slow in comparison!! The trail off is pretty nice as well.

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Permalink Reply by Jenny on October 22, 2007 at 8:17am

David,

How fast does it seem to peak for you?

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Permalink Reply by Dave on October 22, 2007 at 11:40am

I found this chart showing the Apidra curve, pretty interesting.
Figure 1. Pharmacokinetic profiles of insulin glulisine and regular human insulin in patients with type 1 diabetes after a dose of 0.15 IU/kg

I am not sure how quickly it is peaking for me but my bg was 83, I bolused and then ate 60gr of carb and 1 hour later I was at 126.
I have also noticed that I will probably need to lower my basal but I am going to wait for about a week to see how I do.

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Permalink Reply by Florian Menninger Jr on January 29, 2009 at 5:49am

Has anyone seen a graph comparing Apidra with Novolog and Humalog? If so would you please post it in this discussion. I used Apidra when I first started on my Animas 2020 in June of 2007 and now I am using Novolog and I have seen some of the same differences that others have described here.

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Permalink Reply by Sara on October 22, 2007 at 10:36am

Thanks for starting this discussion, David.
I have used Humalog since it was introduced and it has worked pretty well for me, so I have never even tried Novolog. I have been really curious about how Apidra compares and have been meaning to discuss it w/ my endo, but it keeps slipping my mind. Sounds like quite a few people here have seen a quicker onset - I think I may need to give it a try! Please keep me posted!

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Permalink Reply by Dave on October 22, 2007 at 12:03pm

It is sort of interesting that with everyone being diabetic there really isn't much discussion on insulin types and treatment. Thanks for the comment.

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Permalink Reply by Florian Menninger Jr on October 23, 2007 at 12:27pm

Hello Dave,
I was bolusing with Apidra and using a split dose of Levemir as my basal for MDI and getting very good blood sugar control. My last A1C on MDI was 5.4%.

Last June I started using an Animas 2020 pump with Apidra and it's taking longer than I thought to fine tune the settings. For good post prandial control I have to bolus 10 to 20 minutes before I eat especially if my pre meal blood sugar in above 140.

How long does it take for Apidra to diffuse out from the infusion site when you give a bolus? Does it depend on where the cannula is? How about the length of the cannula 6 mm or 9 mm? Does one work better than the other for you? Does Apidra lose any of its activity on the 3rd or 4th day in the cartridge and infusion set tubing? I am using a total daily dose of 25-30 U of Apidra so I change my infusion set every 4 days and have gone as long as 5 days. No problems with infusion sites. I'm using INSETS and testing the 6 mm and 9 mm cannulas.

The initial pump setting for duration of insulin activity was 6 hrs and it was soon realized that the Apidra does not last that long in my body. It was changed to 4 hours and I think it might be necessary to reduce the setting to 3 hours. My insulin sensitivity factor (ISF) is set at 1:100 based on my MDI records and experiences. Back in June I was doing weight resistance training and had gained some weight (lean muscle) which made me more sensitive to insulin. I stopped working out when I went on the pump so I didn't have to deal with exercise as another variable. I lost weight over the last 3 months on the pump and now I think I am less sensitive and will have to change my ISF,

Last but not least my basal rate has been adjusted several times and still needs some work. I suspect that will be an ongoing process as my activity changes. I have been testing about 10 times a day and my daily average has gone from the 150's to the 130's. I will be having my first A1C test on the pump at my next appointment with the endo next month. I am going to ask him about trying Novolog and then Humalog at some point in time to see if I can tell any differences in activity and control between them and Apidra.

I'm looking forward to reading more posts on this site and hearing about the experiences of those using Apidra and other types of insulin analogs in their pump.

Florian

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Permalink Reply by Autumn on October 25, 2007 at 11:27pm

This is interesting.
After reading these posts, I went to the fridge to check out the 2 insulin samples my endo gave me 2 visits ago.
Apidra and Novolog. I've been using Humulog for ages but this has got me curious about the other two. I test about 2.5 hours after eatting and am normally under 140 but could be doing better. It will be interesting to try the other two and see how things go.

I'm one of those diabetics who hates to follow a meal plan.

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Permalink Reply by Florian Menninger Jr on October 26, 2007 at 6:41am

Many of the people who have posted here describe their results with the insulin that they are using in very general terms, i.e. it works well for me, it works better than XYZ, I'm getting much better results, etc. I would like to know specifically what you mean by, it works well, or I'm getting better results. I would suggest that it is very difficult to compare different types of insulin and see differences without controlling all the variables that effect insulin activity and blood sugar control.

If your blood sugar was in the range of 70 to 90 range and you ate something with 15 gms of carbohydrate in it to bring it up, what would your blood sugar be 2 hours later? Would it make a difference what food you ate that had 15 gms of carbs in it? Would it make a difference if you tested at 1 hr and 3 hrs? What would you expect the post prandial number to be? Would you bolus for the 15 gms of carbs? Would you bolus before eating or after eating?

Florian

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