November 25, 2007
Exercise and Sports, Insulin Pumps
Question from Mineral Point, Pennsylvania, USA:
My nine-year-old son will be getting an insulin pump in December. He has been on the elementary wrestling team for the last four years. He would like to wrestle again this year and I would assume that he would disconnect during practice or matches. Do you think he will experience any pain while he wrestles with the infusion set and canula left in, but the pump disconnected? Usually, these wrestlers will put all of their body weight down onto their opponent. There is also rolling and sometimes lifting up and slamming down to the mat. We have had trouble in past years keeping his blood sugar in normal ranges while on injections so we welcome the pump’s flexibility but are just concerned about pain or the infusion set getting pulled out.
Answer:
Keeping an infusion set in while wrestling should not be a problem. Most pump users will not even recognize when it is being tugged on. If it happens to come out, just make sure you have an extra set or two for practices and matches. It may be beneficial to put a piece of athletic tape over the set for extra security.
RP
[Editor’s comment: Please be sure to read our previous questions about Exercise and Sports and confer with your diabetes team to learn the specifics about disconnecting, including how to deal with administering insulin while the pump is off.
BH]
