SS Analysis Please

Hello!

I'm pretty new here and just started testing the end of last week. On the advice of some of you, I lowered his dose to 2 units to see how he reacts since I had not been testing up to that point so I had no idea what such a high dose (4U Novolin n) was doing to his sugar. I suspect he was getting pretty low mid-cycle and shooting back up so he was never really well regulated since his diagnosis in February. I also made the switch to wet food as soon as I started tracking his BG so sadly I don't have any of his dry food numbers. He did go to the vet twice for a BG check (+6 both times) while on dry food and his BG was between 250-300 both times. His +6 numbers on 4U and wet food are MUCH lower so I'm happy to see that the food switch is helping.

I decided to stick with 2U for the rest of the week to see what his numbers do. I think he may be bouncing from his lower number on the 18th. That was soon after I had made the switch to wet food which I suspect also lowered his numbers pretty significantly in combination with the high dose of insulin. Just looking for some experienced SS readers to tell me what they think. I realize I don't have a ton of data, but I'm still learning so any information at this point is better than nothing.

Thank you in advance!
Erica

 

Hi Erica, I’m not an experienced SS reader, but I can bump your post up so others can see it. Is there any way you can get some PM cycle numbers?

 

Yes I need to get some PM cycle numbers. I test at 9am and 9pm so most of that is while I’m snoozing but I agree those numbers would be really helpful. I’ll be setting some alarms

 

Great! That will help. Some kitties go lower in their PM cycles and he’s seeing some nice blues during the day. You’re doing a great job!!!

 

Totally being a pest but I have lots of questions

Emmett has had lots of blues today. Would you consider that good as he seems to be more stable? Should I be looking for lower numbers? How long should I keep a consistent dose before adjusting?

 

You are not a pest! The blues are beautiful Those night tests will help fill the picture and better enable the dosing gurus to help you. I’ll tag @Deb & Wink for more advice.

 

Those blues are good at mid-cycle. Not sure how much more you want to increase the Novolin N dose.
You don't want to see Emmett below about 100 at nadir on NPH insulin.
Here is information from the protocol for you.

Q: How low should I let my cat’s BG drop on N/NPH?
It's advisable to not let the BG drop lower than 100 - 120 mg/dL [5.6 - 6.7 mmol], as measured on a human meter, at the peak of the cycle.
If you are using a pet meter you may want to keep the nadir higher than is suggested for human meters. (If in doubt seek advice from your vet.)
N/NPH can drop the BG very sharply indeed. Trying not to let the BG drop below these levels helps to give a buffer of safety.

If you get a BG of 100 - 120 mg/dL [5.6 - 6.7 mmol] on a human meter, and there is still some time to go until the peak of the cycle you may need to take action to ensure that the BG doesn’t drop much lower, and monitor closely until past the peak of the cycle.
Note: If you are using a pet meter you may need to keep the nadir higher than is suggested for human meters. (If in doubt seek advice from your vet.)

NPH insulins can drop a cats BG levels hard and fast. So you need to be more vigilant when using these insulins.
They are not recommended for feline diabetes, per the AAHA guidelines.

p.s. Since you recently changed to a low carb food, the BG numbers may drop even more.

 

Thank you! This is super helpful. I realize Novolin n isn’t the insulin of choice for most people here but I feel comfortable keeping him on it as long as his numbers aren’t yo-yoing too hard and I can test regularly. I’m considering Lantus but just trying to go slow and see how the low carb food and the lower dose does for a while.

I so appreciate all the information here. It’s so much more than I got from the vet or any other online searching for that matter. You all have helped make me feel like this something I can figure out.

 

Not sure if anyone has pointed you to the Sticky Beginner's Guide To Novolin/Humulin/NPH yet.
If not, you might want to go read it and even print a hard copy to refer to in case you don't get a timely response.

NPH insulins scare me, due to a really bad personal experience with a human family member.