Injecting insulin multiple times a day makes life difficult for people with diabetes. In many cases, analog insulins may be the solution, improving the quality of life of diabetics. The sick person can decide for himself when and how often he will eat. The indication for the use of analogues is intensive insulin therapy.
The selection of preparations is made by a diabetologist, taking into account the individual needs of the patient. Usually, classic and analog insulin are combined in the therapy.
Insulinsanalogs definitely improve the quality of life of patients withdiabetes . They help to maintain the proper level ofglucoseafter a meal, between meals and during sleep, and are also more convenient to use.
What are analog insulins
Earlier insulin preparations, called classic insulin preparations, have a structure identical to human insulin ( although they were created from genetically altered baker's yeast cells or a strain of coliform bacteria). Their cells are made up of two chains of amino acids: A and B - just like cells with insulin produced by the pancreas. The resulting insulins start working 30-45 minutes after injection, the peak of activity is between 2 and 4 hours after injection, and they stop working 7-8 hours after injection. Therefore, in order to prevent the blood sugar level from rising too much after eating, classic insulin should be administered at least 30 minutes before a meal. The patient has to eat regularly, and due to the long-lasting effect of the preparation - also between meals.
Cells of analog insulin also have two chains of amino acids: A and B, and they differ from human insulin in one or more amino acids. This changed the properties of insulin.
The indication for the use of analog drugs is intensive insulin therapy. They are more often recommended for patients with type I diabetes. Analogue preparations are especially recommended
- in the case of unstable type I diabetes, it is often recommended for children and adolescents, as well as for people with a disease over 15 years
- prone to hypoglycemia "at dawn", which occurs at 5-7 am
- after surgical removal of the pancreas.
Insulins with fast or prolonged action
Analogues, due to the changed sequence of amino acids, have a different duration of action: faster or extended.Modification of the B chain structure caused that the preparation, after injection, is absorbed into the blood very quickly, reaches its peak after 20-40 minutes, and stops working after 3-5 hours. Thanks to this, it can be administered immediately before, during and even after a meal. It makes life so much easier. The sick person can decide for himself when and how often he will eat.
In turn, the change of amino acids in the A chain resulted in the prolongation of insulin action. Long-acting analogs are slowly released into the bloodstream over a period of 24-30 hours. By injecting the preparation once a day, the correct insulin level is obtained.
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