Interactive diabetes case 13: Deterioration of glycemia in a 59-year-old patient with type 2 diabetes complicated by retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy – B4

ANSWER — Incorrect.

The diabetes specialist reviews the history and concludes that the patient is not a candidate for pump therapy at this time because of an untreated intercurrent condition. She refers the patient back to you with recommendations for the management of this problem. She notes that insulin pump therapy is generally not necessary for the treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes, but it may be used in exceptional cases in whom it can be an effective means of achieving glucose management.

Insulin pump therapy is simply a method of giving insulin. If the patient is metabolically unstable for other reasons (eg, variations in dietary intake or activity or intercurrent problems), the frequent variations in insulin requirement that result may confound efforts to apply an algorithm for insulin administration with the pump. An insulin pump is not a substitute for addressing other issues in a patient with diabetes.

Return to the previous choice to try again. (See "Interactive diabetes case 13: Deterioration of glycemia in a 59-year-old patient with type 2 diabetes complicated by retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy – A2".)