Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: The study aimed to review the service provided for children and young people with type 1 diabetes mellitus focusing on their quality of life (QoL) before and after commencing insulin pump therapy.

Methods: An online survey using survey monkey was carried out. Each questionnaire had 10 questions and it was filled by either patients or their parents based on the age group.

Results: Forty-two patients are currently on insulin pump therapy. The response rate was 85% (36/42). The average length of insulin pump therapy was 33 months with a mode of 2 years. Fifty-three percent of our patients are using Roche Combo insulin pumps, 39% on Medtronic and 6% on Animas vibe.

All patients were on multiple daily injections (MDI) and carbohydrate counting before being commenced on insulin pump therapy. The QoL was classified into general, physical and moral states and each was ranked poor, medium or good.

Significant improvement was noticed on all aspects of QoL after being started using the insulin pump. The general state improved dramatically in 75% of patients, moral state in 55% and better physical activity in 35% of them (Figure 1).

Figure 1 Quality of life for patients before (top chart) and after (bottom chart) using the insulin pump.

Conclusion: Continuous s.c. insulin infusion delivered via insulin pump has enabled children and young people with type 1 diabetes mellitus to have better quality of life in Macclesfield.