I disagree. Insulin is not insulin. Insulin, like many drugs, varies with the brand. Sometimes a specific brand of medication is necessary, and the cheaper generics are not effective. Conversely, the opposite might be true. It varies with the patient. This young man had lived with Type 1 insulin quite successfully, and he knew how to take care of himself. This is a very sad story, I wish there was some agency or private charity that could have helped him.
I'm just quoting the doctor advising a recent diagnosed patient. (long story). Some brands do things differently or more effectively or quicker but insulin is what our body produces for that particular purpose. I'm guessing this man changed brands without consulting a doctor and without researching precautions and got himself in a mess. If he transitioned differently he probably would have had a different outcome.
Insulin especially in type 1 diabetes must be tailored to the individual. Insulin, depending on the type, can act in minutes and used right before meals, to taking hours to work and only needed daily. A rough example would be like glues. Some are instant bonding and some take 12 hours to cure.
This is so sad. You can not afford 1200 a month when you work for a dog kennel. When we were on Medicaid, they would not cover the insulin my husband took when we paid 1200 a month for cobra Ins. Even now the Medicare supplemental Ins. Doesn’t want to pay for his type of insulin. Only cheaper one.
I agree. Having been on several different immunosuppressives of both brand and the generics of those brands, sometimes the generics were not as effective. When I was in high school, generic cyclosporine didn’t suppress my immune system enough, and I needed the brand Neoral. Rather than increase the dosage of the generic and the horrendous side effects, we opted to fight with the insurance company to cover it even though I hadn’t had a transplant. At the time it was $5000 monthly without coverage, and we got them to cover it, with a $199 copay. I was 17, and on stupid expensive drugs which caused the side-effects of chemo. Hair loss and all.
You never abruptly change meds without consulting your doctor. Ever. And “over the counter” drugs even more so, because quality control just isn’t the same in my experience, and brand ingredients vary.
Most of my medications are generics and do their job just fine, but sometimes the formulation is just different enough to not be compatible with my body.
Actually both of you are right.
There is no way to know why he died or if the different insulin had anything to do with it from information given.