Usability and preference evaluation of a prefilled insulin pen with a novel injection mechanism by people with diabetes and healthcare professionals

Abstract

Objective:

This cross-over usability study assessed the perceptions of, and preference for, FT (FlexTouch), a new prefilled insulin pen, compared with KP (KwikPen) another widely available prefilled insulin pen, among people with diabetes and healthcare professionals (physicians and nurses).

*FlexTouch (FT) is a registered trade name of Novo Nordisk A/S, Bagsvaerd, Denmark.

†KwikPen (KP) is a registered trade name of Eli Lilly & Co., Indianapolis, IN, USA.

Research design and methods:

Participants were randomly assigned to start with either FT or KP. Following instruction on how to operate the pen, the participant performed several injections at different doses into a foam cushion and then answered written questions on ease of use, confidence and preference.

Results:

Seventy-nine people with diabetes and 81 healthcare professionals (40 physicians and 41 nurses) took part. Overall, most respondents preferred using FT (86%) to KP (7%; p < 0.001), found FT (85%) the easier pen to use versus KP (4%; p < 0.001), and would recommend FT (88%) rather than KP (6%; p < 0.001). Ratings for FT were also significantly higher than for KP on questions relating to the injection process, including ease of depressing the push-button and ease of injecting at three dose levels (20 International Units [IU], 40 IU and 60 IU [p < 0.001 for all]). Significantly more respondents chose FT as the pen that gave them most confidence in correct and complete insulin delivery (73% vs. 6% for KP; p < 0.001).

Conclusions:

FT was rated significantly higher (all p < 0.001) for ease of use and confidence, and was preferred over KP by people with diabetes, physicians and nurses. The features of FT may improve the insulin injection experience for a wide range of users. A limitation of the usability questionnaire employed in this study is that it did not assess the factors that influence preference. Additional analyses could be conducted using multivariate regression to help elucidate the features of FT that appeal to different users.

Key words::

• Confidence
• Diabetes patients
• Healthcare professionals
• Preference
• Prefilled insulin pen
• Usability

Transparency

Declaration of funding

This study and the preparation of this article were funded by Novo Nordisk A/S (Bagsvaerd, Denmark).

Declaration of financial/other relationships

T.B. has disclosed that he has received consulting honoraria from Roche, Sanofi-Aventis and Novo Nordisk, and speaking honoraria from Amylin, Novo Nordisk, Becton-Dickinson & Co., and Sanofi-Aventis. He has received research support from Animas, Bayer, Becton-Dickinson & Co., Biodel, Boehringer Ingelheim, Corcept, Bristol Myers Squibb, Dexcom, Gilead, GlaxoSmithKline, Halozyme, Lifescan, Lilly, Medtronic, Merck, Novo Nordisk, Resmed, Roche, Sanofi-Aventis, and Xoma. J.T. has disclosed that he has acted as a speaker for Novo Nordisk and a consultant for various pharmaceutical companies and participates in clinical trials. M.N. has disclosed that he is an employee of Novo Nordisk. G.S. has disclosed that he is a consultant for various pharmaceutical companies including Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Sanofi-Aventis, Becton-Dickinson & Co., and MSD.

CMRO peer reviewers may have received honoraria for their review work. The peer reviewers on this manuscript have disclosed that they have no relevant financial relationships.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Richard Rubin and Mark Peyrot for their helpful input into the outline of this manuscript. Editorial support for this article was provided by Nicole Meinel and John Clarke of ESP Bioscience (Crowthorne, UK), funded by Novo Nordisk A/S. The study was managed, performed, and the data analyzed, by Aequus Research (London, UK), funded by Novo Nordisk A/S.

Notes

*FlexTouch (FT) is a registered trade name of Novo Nordisk A/S, Bagsvaerd, Denmark.

†KwikPen (KP) is a registered trade name of Eli Lilly & Co., Indianapolis, IN, USA.

‡FlexPen is a registered trade name of Novo Nordisk A/S, Bagsvaerd, Denmark.

*NovoFine is a registered trade name of Novo Nordisk A/S, Bagsvaerd, Denmark.