Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases in the United States. But many people still don’t understand diabetes, the effect it has on the body, or the potential complications of the disease. In fact, diabetes seems to have become almost commonplace, to the point that it’s accepted as a normal part of life.
This blind acceptance, though, is exactly what leads to diabetic complications and cases of diabetes that are so severe that they don’t respond to usual treatment methods. In those cases, doctors sometimes turn to pulsatile insulin infusion therapy, a type of diabetes treatment that involves administering insulin directly through your veins.
At US Neuropathy Centers, we have experience treating worsening diabetic symptoms with pulsatile insulin infusion therapy.
When you eat, your body breaks down the food you ate into sugar, which then enters your bloodstream. In a healthy person, the pancreas releases insulin (a hormone) to take sugar out of the blood and store it in cells. Once the sugar reaches your body cells, it’s either used right away for energy or stored for later use.
In a person with diabetes — Type 2 specifically — the body either doesn’t make enough insulin or doesn’t respond to insulin. This results in chronically high blood sugar levels.
When your body doesn’t respond to insulin and your blood sugar levels stay elevated, it can lead to a range of diabetic complications. To avoid complications, people with diabetes may take insulin through syringes and needles, insulin pens, jet injections, inhalers, or pumps.
These traditional methods don’t work for everyone, though, particularly those whose diabetes has progressed beyond a certain point.
Pulsatile insulin infusion therapy is a highly effective and efficient way of giving your body the insulin it needs to remove sugar from your blood. A computerized system delivers insulin intravenously through a catheter. A computer detects your blood sugar levels and other important health markers, then sends insulin in pulses based on that information.
Pulsatile insulin infusion therapy is usually reserved for people who have a severe case of diabetes with complications. For example, someone who has started to experience diabetic peripheral neuropathy may be a good candidate for pulsatile insulin infusion therapy. People whose diabetes hasn’t improved with other treatment methods may also find success with pulsatile insulin infusion therapy.
To learn more about this advanced treatment for diabetes, get in touch with our medical staff at US Neuropathy Centers today. Schedule a consultation by calling one of our Georgia locations or requesting an appointment online.
