Pump Users Clamor for Faster Insulin: Is Fast-Acting Insulin Aspart Ready for Them?

Abstract

Recently approved in Europe, Canada, and the United States, fast-acting insulin aspart (FIASP®) is a new rapid acting insulin. Approved for subcutaneous or IV injection use, there is little data available regarding the clinical utility of FIASP in insulin pumps. The article by Zijlstra and colleagues in this issue begins to close this gap by testing pump compatibility of FIASP in the clinic. Reporting on a small (37 subjects) and short (6 weeks) study looking at aspects of infusion set propensity for clogging and malfunction, no cases of infusion set plugging in either FIASP (25 subjects) or insulin aspart (12 subjects) were seen. Unexplained hyperglycemia and premature infusion set changes were more common with FIASP than with insulin aspart. This study demonstrated sufficient safety and efficacy of FIASP in the pump setting to pave the way for longer, larger and more definitive clinical trials.