Insulin therapy has long been an important part of diabetes management. However, the repeated and multiple daily subcutaneous injections and the severe blood sugar fluctuations and even hypoglycemia often prevent people from using regular insulin. The insulin pump, known as the “artificial pancreas”, what are the advantages and disadvantages of insulin pumps? What are the indications for insulin pumps? So, is there a medical technology that is better than regular insulin injections, more convenient to use and can simulate physiological insulin secretion? Well, there is! This is the intelligent insulin pump, which is known as the “artificial pancreas”. The “artificial pancreas” called insulin pump, insulin pump advantages and disadvantages? Insulin pump indications? This article introduces you to an important technology in the field of insulin therapy – insulin pump, insulin pump advantages and disadvantages? Insulin pump indications? Insulin pump function and development Insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreatic beta cells of the pancreas, which mainly plays a role in lowering blood sugar. The second is “postprandial insulin secretion”, which is a large amount of insulin secretion caused by meals, mainly to control postprandial blood glucose levels. The insulin pump is an automatic insulin infusion device controlled by a computer program or artificial intelligence, which uses human technology to simulate the physiological secretion of insulin to the greatest extent possible, in order to achieve more efficient and smooth blood sugar control. It sounds very “cutting-edge” and “advanced”, doesn’t it? But in fact, this concept was introduced in the 1960s. In the 1960s, the concept of “continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion” was first proposed; by the 1970s, subcutaneous infusion devices simulating physiological insulin secretion were available, but they were complicated to operate and very large; by the late 1990s, insulin pumps were significantly smaller and easier to operate. After entering the 21st century, insulin pumps with continuous glucose monitoring function began to appear, which led to the gradual development of “closed-loop” insulin pumps that can automatically calculate and adjust the insulin infusion dose based on real-time glucose monitoring data; in 2012, insulin pumps with continuous glucose monitoring function were marketed in China. In 2012, the insulin pump with continuous blood glucose monitoring function was listed in China; in 2021, the insulin pump that can be remotely controlled by cell phone was listed. In other words, nowadays, there are already many intelligent patch insulin pumps with continuous blood glucose monitoring function available for our use. Insulin pump vs regular insulin A large number of clinical studies have found that continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion through an insulin pump can bring more benefits to diabetic patients compared to ordinary multiple daily subcutaneous insulin injections. First, for both type 1 and type 2 diabetic patients, insulin pump therapy can bring glycated hemoglobin levels up to standard faster; second, insulin pumps, especially those with continuous blood glucose monitoring, can greatly reduce the occurrence of hypoglycemic events; third, intelligent insulin pumps can effectively reduce blood glucose fluctuations caused by dawn phenomenon and postprandial hyperglycemia, making blood glucose control smoother; fourth, intelligent insulin pumps can effectively reduce blood glucose fluctuations caused by dawn phenomenon and postprandial hyperglycemia. Fourthly, ordinary subcutaneous insulin injection can easily cause insulin to accumulate under the skin and form “insulin pools”, which will cause the growth of subcutaneous fat and thus affect the absorption effect of insulin. Fifthly, it has been found that the total dose of insulin injected into the body by insulin pump is lower than that by regular insulin injection to achieve the same level of blood sugar control. This means that insulin pump therapy is more efficient and can also reduce the weight gain effect caused by too much insulin; sixth, the use of insulin pumps can delay the occurrence of diabetic complications such as retinopathy, peripheral neuropathy and kidney damage; at the same time it allows diabetic patients to have more choices in terms of eating and exercise and retain a more flexible lifestyle; seventh, it is from the economic aspect to look at this issue. It is true that, at first glance, it appears that insulin pumps are significantly more expensive to use than regular insulin. However, some pharmacoeconomic studies point out that for patients with type 1 diabetes, insulin pumps can reduce the occurrence of diabetic complications, reduce the costs associated with the treatment of complications and improve patients’ quality of life, and therefore have a better cost-benefit ratio; while for patients with type 2 diabetes who require hospitalization, insulin pumps can control blood glucose faster, shorten the length of hospitalization and reduce the total hospitalization costs. Therefore, for diabetic patients who are really suitable for insulin pump, it is recommended to choose insulin pump as the first choice for treatment. However, not all diabetic patients need insulin pump treatment, so let’s talk about which patients are more suitable. Who is an insulin pump for? In fact, in principle, all diabetic patients who need insulin therapy can use insulin pumps. However, in clinical practice, there are two types of insulin pumps: short-term insulin pump use and long-term insulin pump use. The use of short-term insulin pumps is mainly suitable for the following three categories of patients: The first category is patients who need short-term insulin “intensive treatment”. Clinically, patients who need insulin “intensive treatment” are mostly of two types: first, patients with high or fluctuating blood glucose levels who need intensive inpatient blood glucose control; second, patients who have just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus and are expected to recover rapidly from islet secretion through short-term intensive insulin therapy. The second category is patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who are in a stressful state. The so-called “stress state” mainly refers to a state in which the body’s sympathetic nerve excitement, adrenaline, glucagon and other hormone secretion increase after some external stimuli, causing a sudden rise in blood sugar. The third category is related to pregnancy, such as gestational diabetic patients, diabetic patients before pregnancy preparation, etc. The use of long-term insulin pumps, on the other hand, is mainly suitable for type 1 diabetic patients and type 2 diabetic patients who require multiple long-term insulin injections. Type 1 diabetic patients often have a significant decline in their own insulin secretion function, and insulin pump is similar to an “artificial pancreas” that can simulate physiological insulin secretion, therefore, it is naturally very suitable; while among type 2 diabetic patients who need multiple insulin injections, such as those with great blood sugar fluctuations, serious dawn phenomenon, frequent occurrence of The insulin pump is particularly suitable for patients with type 2 diabetes who require multiple insulin injections, such as those with high blood glucose fluctuations, severe dawn, frequent hypoglycemia, irregular meals, and unwillingness to take multiple subcutaneous injections daily.