May 20, 2002
Insulin
Question from Greece:
During the three years my 13 year old daughter has had diabetes, we tried already many insulins, and at this moment she is using Regular and NPH. Her Regular is given before her meal and NPH before she goes to bed, but she goes to bed at 9:00 pm and takes the NPH at 11:00 pm so I have to wake her up every evening.Also her blood sugar is going up and down. Many times she wakes up with a blood sugar of about 300 mg/dl [16.7mmol/L], at lunchtime she is okay, at dinnertime she has about 200-300 mg/dl [11.1-16.7 mmol/L], and she has hypos of 40-50 mg/dl [2.2-2.8 mmol/L] five or six times a week.
Somebody told me her son is using Actrapid and Insulatard (Protaphane) and that she is satisfied. She said that Protaphane works longer than NPH. As I live on an island, I have to go with her to Athens every three months, so in the meantime I try to find information on Internet. Is it better for her to stop using Regular and NPH and to use Actrapid and Protaphane?
Answer:
NPH and Protaphane are the brand names for the same insulin , and no difference at all exists between them. Your daughter would greatly benefit in terms of blood sugar and being to have an earlier injection from the new basal insulin called Lantus (insulin glargine). It’s a very good insulin, but I don’t know whether this new insulin is available in Greece. However, you might want to buy it (if your daughter’s doctor says it’s okay), as we advise our Italian patients, through some German or Swiss pharmacies by faxing to them the doctor’s prescription. Ask your daughter’s diabetes team for further help.
MS
