Hmm.. who knew

[nicole]

I didn't know that there was another rapid acting insulin. I was reading a diabetes health magazine and I saw Insulins, so I wanted to check them out and see what the difference in time for them to peak was and I saw one called Apidra.

I never knew there was a third rapid acting insulin :confused:.. ???

Does anyone use that insulin?

[Gordonm]

Yes I have heard of it. Team Type 1 a cycling team of some diabetics and non diabetics is sponsered by Aprida. I have not used it and it is not as widely known as Humalog and Novalog but I guess it works.

Here is a little blurb about them. Team Type 1 Riders, Juvenile Diabetes Cure, Curing Diabetes One Mile at a Time (http://www.teamtype1.org/)

[nicole]

Thanks I'll read that.

Yeah I had no idea there was a third. My docotrs are always talking about different insulins with me but that one has never come up.

Thats an interesting article :)

[fairyblood]

Apidra is made by the same company that makes Lantus anofi-aventis. It is a newer insulin and some people really like although I have never tired it yet. If you want more info this is really interesting: <http://products.sanofi-aventis.us/apidra/apidra.pdf> if you look at page four you can see its action compared to humalog... it looks to be very similar but you never know one might work better in you body then another. I personally like novolog better then humalog and they are supposed to be fairly similar. See if you can get a free sample if you are curious.

[poodlebone]

A lot of people who use it say that it starts working faster than Humalog/Novolog and doesn't last as long. I've never tried it because Humalog works well for me, although the thought of insulin kicking in even faster is intriguing. It seems like it would be the best for correcting a high blood sugar if it really does go work work sooner but doesn't hang around too long, causing you go too low.

[BlueSky]

... if you look at page four you can see its action compared to humalog... .
That comparison is actually between Apidra and Regular, which is a much older and longer acting insulin. The interesting thing about it is that, although the Regular was injected half an hour earlier than the Apidra, the blood glucose profile after the meal was just about as good. Kinda makes one wonder why we bother with all this expensive new stuff :D .

[Ionutz]

Apidra works like a charm!! I've used all types of insulin and for now this one works for me.(the best i've used was Actrapid...)

[mortis505]

http://www.appscout.com/images/spam%20boy.jpg

we have a winner!!!!! 6 posts and they all advertise this same site. Someone didn't read the forum rules.

[gambi]

I use Apidra - love it. However I have my eye on a new insulin that is in the pipeline I hope we see something in 2009.
It is called Vioject Biodel Inc. (http://www.biodel.com)

[Gary_W]

I've been using Apidra now for almost 18 months. My reason for changing was to try and address post-meal spikes.

For my money, it is a better insulin than Novorapid (my previous weapon of choice). It does indeed kick in quicker, it has a stronger peak and a weaker tail. This means that I can eat pretty much what I like without suffering badly from spikes. It is evil stuff.

The thing it doesn't cope with so well are the really loooong acting meals, as it can fire in too quickly and then be all gone whilst the meal is still going. It doesn't cope well with a restaurant Indian meal for instance unless you do more than one shot, but then other insulins don't always do well with certain foods either. For me with a pump, this isn't an issue as I can slow it down with an extended bolus for the meals that would otherwise give problems.

I'd say if you only ever eat low-gi foods and your 2 hour PP results are always in your target range then leave it alone. If you want your 2 hour PP's to go down, Apidra may well help you in the same way it helped me.

[Gary_W]

That comparison is actually between Apidra and Regular, which is a much older and longer acting insulin. The interesting thing about it is that, although the Regular was injected half an hour earlier than the Apidra, the blood glucose profile after the meal was just about as good. Kinda makes one wonder why we bother with all this expensive new stuff :D .

It annoys me also that they compare to R.... If they stuck this stuff's profile on a graph with Novorapid, Humalog and Apidra then it would have meaning. As it is, it's like saying 'Buy our new laptop; it's much better than the pocket calculator you are using....'

[Subby]

I've been on novorapid for some years. I tried Apidra earlier this year after insisting over and again with my hesitant endo.

Turned out it didn't work that well for me. Some strange hot flush feelings and the action was unpredictable. (about 4 days testing, so not conclusive in my mind, but enough not to go further).

I'd say it's worth trying if there is some reason you are unhappy with your current insulin. But bear in mind that like me, you might find it doesn't give you a better alternative. Different insulins just seem to work well for some and not for others.

There have been a few threads here at DF about Apidra. I couldn't say if they give much more information, but a search would bring them up.

[akielpinski]

I've used Apidra for a while now and love it. Apidra really hits me hour 3 and by hour 4 it's gone. The others would hit me like 3.5 to 4 hours and woud last up to 5.5 or 6 hrs! Apidra works much better for me.

[art]

I'm a type 2 on Janumet that uses insulin on occasion.
My Doc gave me a sample to try.
WOW, in 20 minutes my BS was down.
I didn't test the long term as I use insulin to knock down a spike.
Much faster than Novalin or Novalog.

The Doc told me that was the reaction most of his other patients had.

But, we are all different

Art

[Subby]

I'm a type 2 on Janumet that uses insulin on occasion.
My Doc gave me a sample to try.
WOW, in 20 minutes my BS was down.
I didn't test the long term as I use insulin to knock down a spike.
Much faster than Novalin or Novalog.

The Doc told me that was the reaction most of his other patients had.

But, we are all different

Art

I would have loved to have had faster action with Apidra like this, the possiblity was the reason I basically fought my endo some months to try it. Humalog also, which led to daily nausia. Unfortunately, you can't argue with the cold hard results. It was frustrating to keep insisting on trying it (I never really worked out why such resistance from my endo, it took way too long) to the point it seemed something I was pinning too much hope on (I wasn't, I just wanted to dm well try it)... and then have it not work in the end.

Oh well.

The good thing is I discovered other things to resolve absorption issues I was having at about the same time, so I'm now really very happy with my insulin (novorapid) for the first time ever.

[sweetlife]

Avantis has just launched Apidra here,will test it for sure and post our experence here,there is no harm to switch imo but give some time to test it fully.We find good results of Novorapid only after 1 month,I have also seen couple of T1 taking Humalog and at first glance I feel their dose is lower compare to Novo,is it true that humalog works well compare to N.rapid?I am thiking to use one desposable pen for my daughter soon once her cartridge of Novo comes to an end.In short try different insulin and see how it works for you.

[fairyblood]

mortis505 are you talking about me spamming? Because I really don't care what insulin someone uses. I just thought that the grafts are interesting. Sorry if I stepped on someone's toes.

BlueSky, there are also charts on one page that have the comparison of Apidra, Lispro(humalog) and Regular. Yea most of them of comparisons to Regular but there is a graft with humalog and that is what I am interested in.

Personally the action of Apidra looks a little to long for my tastes but do whatever works best for you.

[Subby]

mortis505 are you talking about me spamming? Because I really don't care what insulin someone uses. I just thought that the grafts are interesting. Sorry if I stepped on someone's toes.

Nah mortis was replying to was a spammer who's message got deleted. Nothing to worry about :)


BlueSky, there are also charts on one page that have the comparison of Apidra, Lispro(humalog) and Regular. Yea most of them of comparisons to Regular but there is a graft with humalog and that is what I am interested in.

Personally the action of Apidra looks a little to long for my tastes but do whatever works best for you.

That's strange, I was under the distinct impression it was to all intents and purposes a rapid-class insulin (so with Novo and Huma) but on the faster side of things. I'm sure I did research into this a few months ago and found that. This would make it the quickest insulin available (for those that it works well for). Your info seems to conflict? I'm confused now.

[fairyblood]

Yes Apidra is a short acting insulin however I believe that the tail is at least four hours after the injection which isn't to different then what novolog and humalog. I thought I had read someplace that it started faster (which I think is good) but lasted longer (which is not something I want to deal with). However I could be wrong I can't remember where I read about it and all I can find now is that it is it lasts at most four hours. I will have to look into it more and see what I can find.

[Subby]

Yes Apidra is a short acting insulin however I believe that the tail is at least four hours after the injection which isn't to different then what novolog and humalog. I thought I had read someplace that it started faster (which I think is good) but lasted longer (which is not something I want to deal with). However I could be wrong I can't remember where I read about it and all I can find now is that it is it lasts at most four hours. I will have to look into it more and see what I can find.

Hold on... it's a rapid acting, not a short acting... they are different classes or groups of insulin. :) See the following for clarification: Diabetes - insulin choices - Better Health Channel. (http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Diabetes_insulin_choices?OpenDocument) (and yes Apidra is mispelt :) )

I think that graph on page 4 the pdf confuses this conversation, because that is a comparison of action, not timing. I assume there is a reason to establish a baseline of action vs. the more established regular/fast insulin... I don't really know. However the confusion really kicks if you look at those graphs without realising the insulins are administered at different times in relation to the meal.

Within the context of Apidra vs regular (which I believe is going to be a short acting such as Actrapid, it beyond my scope to know exactly), as Bluesky points out the relatively small changes in timing over the life of the "effective" bolus may not be enough to make Apidra an attractive change for people. Then again, if onset is an issue at all (and it often is with regular) it's got very clear advantages, just like other rapids.

In the end, there seem to be perhaps vague assertations by Aventis (can't find anything specific now) that Apidra may be slightly faster onset than other analogues and slightly faster to leave the system than other analogues. This certainly seems backed up by the comments of many who've tried it here, for what it's worth. But yes, firm information on exactly how much faster it can be expected to work does seem thin on the ground. Must not have been striking exidence to support the claim/phenomenon.

I think there is another good thing about Apidra even if it's not necessarily going to be faster than Novo or Huma. The good thing is choice. I am extremely lucky to get along with Novorapid with no side effects and decent absorption. Both Apidra and Humalog would make my life substantially harder and less pleasant. The efficacy of different insulins seems to be the luck of the draw for different people and I for one would prefer 3 to try rather than just 2.

[nicole]

[QUOTE=Subby;399891]Nah mortis was replying to was a spammer who's message got deleted. Nothing to worry about :)[QUOTE/]

Did I post this after someone else did??

[Subby]

Nope, the post in question was in the middle of this thread, on page one. You can see where it was deleted.

[fairyblood]

Glad to know about the spam that I never saw. Thanks for letting me know guys. Thanks for the info Subby, interesting stuff.