Finding the chase and cutting to it

If all is going well, there’s nothing unusual going on, diabetes can be  straightforward.

The continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion device (an insulin pump to you and me) makes this easier by stripping out the least configurable and predictable part of insulin replacement therapy – the long acting insulin.

Instead, your body receives a closer match to its needs by dripping, often tiny, amounts of short acting insulin through a temporary cannula.

Everything is geared so that the diabetic receives the insulin it needs regardless of whether or what they eat.

Obviously, diabetics need to eat: for this extra bolus of carbohydrate, a matching dose of insulin must be given.  “Simples”.  Well, actually there are many options, including a split bolus.  And the simple calculations then become much more complicated.

Over the first couple of weeks of pump therapy the diabetic needs to work out the appropriate doses.  This is often achieved by using charts and keeping records.

Or you work out your ratios (I love the Insulin Pumpers pages for this: these pages were a great help in getting my pump set up).  Work out your ratios, multiply them in your head and you have a basis for the levels of insulin doses and carbohydrate in-take.

This is great but let’s face it, the carbohydrate ratio is most useful when you’re hypo and mental arithmetic it’s your strong suit at that moment!  Or treating an under-bolus following a work meal!

So I wrote a set of tools (now available for android phones and tablets at Google’s Play Store) to help do the sums and provide alternatives.  I did these on the web so I have access to the tools where-ever I was in the world and whatever device I had to hand.  There’s a small charge for the work on publishing the app but further usage is free.

Please, let me know what you think.