KK Patton

In 2001, Catherine "KK" Patton was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes while pregnant with her first child. Suddenly, KK was faced with the lifelong, daily struggle of trying to effectively manage her condition. Like most people with type 1 diabetes, KK was first introduced to injection therapy to treat her condition. As time passed, KK grew weary of giving herself a shot each time she needed insulin. The multiple daily injections often left her skin bruised and sensitive so KK quickly found herself skipping meals in order to avoid taking injections. Aware that poor adherence to her treatment regimen could lead to serious health complications, KK decided to switch to insulin pump therapy. With the pump, she only had to puncture her skin when changing out her infusion set once every three days, but she found the machine was not for her. After struggling with both injection therapy and pump therapy, KK fought to keep her condition under control. However, she was unwilling to allow diabetes to dominate her life. Realizing an unmet need existed, KK was determined to create a device that could meet her medical needs, yet have a minimal impact on her daily life.

Understanding that she was not alone in her frustration, KK wanted to help other people with diabetes and provide them another treatment option. KK committed herself to turning her vision into reality, founded Patton Medical Devices and introduced the i-port^®.