Sputtering pancreas?

[Jen&Eddie]

Hello!

I'm wondering if someone can describe the pattern you see when kitty's pancreas is "sputtering" or point me to a place where it's been "defined?" I've seen it referred to a lot, but I'm not sure exactly what it looks like. I'm guessing that you might assume that the pancreas is at work when you see numbers going down in response to food?

I ask in part because of my guy Eddie's recent dives and surfs. Last night for example, a multitude of HC and MC snacks did almost nothing to bring up his numbers, so I'm suspicious that maybe his pancreas was "fighting" my efforts to bring him up to surf in slightly higher green numbers?

 

[LindaMS]

I think you are doing the right thing by going down to 1 unit. I would hold that dose, and dont even think of going up at all for at least 3 or 4 days. Something is definately going on with your cat. That is not to say you will be able to stay that low... no guarantees, but he is sure showing you that he can produce some insulin on his own, in my opinion.

Keep testing frequently. Remember it will take a while for the insulin you gave in the last 3 or 4 days to clear as well, so keep vigilant.

 

[Elizabeth and Bertie]

...I'm guessing that you might assume that the pancreas is at work when you see numbers going down in response to food?

Yes indeed, numbers going down in response to food is a good sign.
There are other signs too that the pancreas is working more; not least of which is that the cat requires increasingly smaller doses of insulin.
Then there is the situation where the injected insulin lowers the cat's blood glucose, but, once the blood glucose is lowered the pancreas seems able to produce enough of it's own insulin to hold those low numbers for a time, sometimes quite a long time. It's as though the pancreas 'picks up the ball and runs with it' until it gets tired.
Increased pancreas activity seems to vary a lot in how it manifests in the cat, and it can be fairly consistent or erratic. And when it is erratic it really can be like the pancreas is 'sputtering'; producing insulin on an off in 'fits and starts'. That can be quite challenging for the care-giver. (My cat has had an erratic sputtering pancreas for 7 years. It certainly keeps me on my toes... :roll: )

Eliz

 

[Jen&Eddie]

Thank you so much for your input!

...I'm guessing that you might assume that the pancreas is at work when you see numbers going down in response to food?

Yes indeed, numbers going down in response to food is a good sign.
There are other signs too that the pancreas is working more; not least of which is that the cat requires increasingly smaller doses of insulin.
Then there is the situation where the injected insulin lowers the cat's blood glucose, but, once the blood glucose is lowered the pancreas seems able to produce enough of it's own insulin to hold those low numbers for a time, sometimes quite a long time. It's as though the pancreas 'picks up the ball and runs with it' until it gets tired.
Increased pancreas activity seems to vary a lot in how it manifests in the cat, and it can be fairly consistent or erratic. And when it is erratic it really can be like the pancreas is 'sputtering'; producing insulin on an off in 'fits and starts'. That can be quite challenging for the care-giver. (My cat has had an erratic sputtering pancreas for 7 years. It certainly keeps me on my toes... :roll: )

Eliz

This is exactly the information I was looking for. Thank you! It does indeed seem that Eddie's pancreas may be sputtering...i.e., not going up in response to food, and surfing in green numbers for an extended period.

I think you are doing the right thing by going down to 1 unit. I would hold that dose, and dont even think of going up at all for at least 3 or 4 days. Something is definately going on with your cat. That is not to say you will be able to stay that low... no guarantees, but he is sure showing you that he can produce some insulin on his own, in my opinion.

Keep testing frequently. Remember it will take a while for the insulin you gave in the last 3 or 4 days to clear as well, so keep vigilant.

Thank you Linda! I'm curious to see if the BCS dose of 1u does anything today. Eddie historically hasn't done much with a BCS dose. I shoot on a sliding scale, and we seem to be coming back down that scale rather rapidly again lately. nailbite_smile If Eddie does have some movement on the 1u, I am actually considering doing a "reset" and shooting 1u to see what happens. Otherwise, we'll continue to do downward tweaks on the sliding scale. Interestingly, while ProZinc is thought of as an "in-and-out" insulin, Carl had written a nice article on "carryover" in that it does seem like ProZinc occasionally seems to have a bit of a depot effect. I've seen this with Eddie where the next dose has a little more "oomph" after a lower cycle/higher dose.