Most children with type 1 diabetes use syringes to get their insulin. But a significant percentage of these children are afraid of needles and this makes multiple insulin injections each day a very stressful task for parent and child. But there are devices specifically designed with the needle-phobic child or teen in mind. Here are three that many parents have found very helpful.
Autoject 2® (Owen Mumford)
Autoject 2®
is an automatic insulin injection device. The appealing feature for those fearful of needles is that it completely hides the syringe and needle from view. It is specifically designed for anyone, children in particular, who fear of needles.
How it works
You simply take your syringe, place it inside the device and with the touch of one button it injects both the needle and dispenses the insulin from the syringe. You can adjust the depth of the injection by changing the setting on bottom half of the device. It works with 100- and 50-unit syringes but not 30-unit syringes. The device also has a safety feature that prevents it from firing unless it is pressed against the skin.
NovoPen® Junior (Novo Nordisk)
NovoPen Junior® is an insulin pen specifically made with children and teens who may be fearful of needles. It completely hides the needle and has a one-touch release button that quickly injects the insulin.
How it works
NovoPen® Junior insulin pens use vials of insulin that last for multiple injections so there’s no need to manually draw up your insulin as you would with a syringe. You simply change the needle tip with each injection. The pen has a reliable dial for dosage. The minimum dose is 1 unit but thereafter you can dose in half-units. The one disadvantage of insulin pens is that you cannot mix types of insulin. If you were previously mixing insulin in a syringe, you would have to get two separate insulin pens to accomplish the same dosing.
Inject-Ease® (Palco Labs)
Inject-Ease ® is an injection device that is also designed for those fearful of needles by completely hiding the needle. It uses a standard 100, 50 or 30 unit syringe but only works with BD brand syringes.
How it works
Once you’ve drawn up the insulin in a syringe you place it in the Inject Ease® device, cock the mechanism and press the button. Insulin is quickly injected. A special tip is designed to reduce the sensation of pain.
