NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — More evidence may be needed to support research that implied that atmospheric pressure during airplane travel could influence the effectiveness of insulin pump devices, according to an editorial published in Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics.

Irl Hirsch, senior editor of the peer-reviewed journal and professor of medicine at University of Washington School of Medicine (Seattle), commented on a recent study — "Changes in altitude cause unintended insulin delivery from insulin pumps: mechanisms and implications" — that claimed changes in atmospheric pressure in a hypobaric chamber caused the improper amounts of insulin were delivered to a small number of patients with Type 1 diabetes who used insulin pumps. Hirsch said that the research had several limitations.

"This study was implemented in such a small number of people that large conclusions may not be justified," Hirsch wrote. "It is possible the authors overreacted in their recommendations."

Click here to read the full editorial. Click here to view the original study.