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If you use a CGM, on a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with the accuracy of your CGM? (1 = least satisfied, 5 = most satisfied)
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I assume my CGM is more accurate than my fingers, as they lack circulation (Raynauds). Sometimes my CGM feels off and my fingers feel more accurate, but time catches up.
I answered 4, but would give my G6 a 5 other than compression lows at night which are very annoying despite my best efforts to find the right spots.
I sleep on my side, so I place my sensor between my belly-button line and halfway to my side. It helps me not get compression lows.
Most satisfied with Dexcom G6. I seldom use my glucometer, mostly only during the 2 hour warm up period. I seldom find it necessary to “check” the Dex.
I love having a CGM as it not only is very accurate but how it helps with my Tandem 2x pump to help keep me in range. My biggest complaint is that it is not accurate when the CGM is compressed. Thankfully that very rarely happens however.
Answered 4, G6. Most sensors are close to perfect with little variance in location placed. Occasionally a sensor will not calibrate or settle in, so 4 rating. BUT I am quite satisfied overall!
I am a senior with an Abbott 14 day Freestyle Libre. I love the convenience and my fingers thank me every day. However I have learned that this CGM runs lower than the blood tests, and gives up before 14 days when the numbers run low across the board. I had a better A1C using the finger sticks, but still want to keep using this Abbott CGM with the reader.
I feel the CGM is very accurate and I no longer do figure sticks unless something seems WAY off.
95+% of the time it’s a 5 with Dex G6. That 10th day or later if extended it can give bad data.
I use FSL2. Very inaccurate first day of sensor change. Even though I apply the new one the night before. Lots of sensor errors. Also last two days numbers are off. Get readings that my BS is 181 and arrow straight up. Have learned to wait until it settles down before covering. Usually goes back down to 140’s. Had the Dexcom G6 prior to this. Had problems but I think better than FSL. And could see on Apple
Watch. Just changed insurance so will inquire into changing my device. But still better than sticking my finger 10 times a day.
I’m in the fifth month of a six month study using dexcom. Get a lot of compression lows and annoying false alarms. But worse is in five months I’ve only two or three sensors last the full 10 days, lose signal in 3-8 days. Unusable s for someone on Medicare.
Dave, have you tried calibrating the Dexcom with your One Touch blood glucose meter? Did you know you can adjust the Dexcom 6 for low and high alerts? I used to lose signals when I left the meter inside the house when I crossed the street for mail. Or went to prune my apple trees. If you and your sensor are over 20 feet away from the monitor, you won’t get readings. Now I just carry the monitor at all times in my shirt or coat pocket.
Much of the time my Dexcom G6 is pretty close to accuracy, but there are times when it is way off, in either direction. I always do a finger check when the G6 reading looks strange to me.
I use Dexcom G6, when its working (majority of the time), its a great: no finger sticks, lots of data on which to base insulin dosing/corrections. The problem: is it’s bad just enough to create confidence issues and question/verify lows/highs with finger sticks. Plus, the first 12-14 hours are just a crap shoot whether its accurate or not. And, lately (been using one year), the last day or so has become questionable. In the year I’ve used, I’ve replaced 7 sensors and one transmitter because they failed to operate decently; that’s about 50 days worth of sensors and 30 days of transmitters, a failure rate of 13.6% and 8.2% respectively. Much better than continual finger sticks, but not an enviable statistical failure rate. Far better than what was in past years, but it needs significant reliability improvement.
You do realize that Dexcom’s G6 transmitter only last 6 month’s before the battery dies.
The transmitter only lasts 3 months.
The G6 is often inaccurate for my slim user who also suffers from frequent compression lows and loss of signal. Both accuracy and reliability need to improve.
I have used the Dexcom G6 for the past 3 1/2 years, at first I checked the accuracy a lot and complained about the differences, rarely is it the same as a finger stick. Then I realized that it measures a different thing, the fluid under the skin. So I accepted it and now rarely finger stick.
My diabetes tech in endocrinology warned me that no CGM measures levels of sugar in the blood, just interstitial fluid. That gave me pause. But now I do not regret my decision to go ahead with the continuous monitor.
I put a 4, because my numbers seem pretty reliable, but I have not compared to a formal glucose lab test result and since restarting a Dexcom CGM in Nov, rarely fingerstick. I did just now out of curiosity. Dex was 148, fingerstick with a Bayer Contour Next meter was 160. This was fasting with a straight arrow and about 24 hours into a new sensor. Since all glucose measuring devices have a margin of error, I’m pretty happy with a 12 pt difference. 🙂
The Libre 2 is so accurate I’ve stopped cross checking with finger sticks, which in winter are especially unpleasant. What I don’t understand about the Libre 2 is why it can only be placed in a relatively small area on the back of my arms. I work out a lot and have solid muscles, and sleeping on the side where the sensor is hurts. The Dexcom seems like it can be placed anywhere. I wonder why the huge and uncomfortable difference.
maybe placing the sensor in a variety of different locations leads to lower accuracy?
I think with most of these devices, only one site is used during the FDA approval process. I know iwth Dexcom it was supposedly used only for the abdomen area, but again, that was due to the DFA approval process.
Most of the time my G6 is fine, although it does routinely report somewhat differently than finger sticks (I always do two sticks to be sure the number is reliable — even the strips have an occasional outlier) – even when my glucose level has been flat for hours. On the other hand, I cannot believe this technology would be satisfactory for a closed-loop system, since about 5% of the time it is either very inaccurate or gives no signal. Since I was forced to switch to the G6 from the G5 (with which I was perfectly happy — especially because I routinely got 14 days service vs. max. of 10 for the G6) I’ve had several sensors fail. Dexcom has always promptly supplied me with a replacement (although recently only with sensors that are very near their expiration date), so it has been no big deal, but I certainly would not want to have my insulin delivery based solely on a G6.
I’d pick 5 if the first 12 hours after warm up were more accurate. Right now I chose 4. Other than that, Dexcom is amazing!
I used the medtronic one it was very inaccurate. 60 to 100 mg off from my meter. I now use the DexCom G6 and it is always with in 5 mg of my glucose meter. I don’t even have to calibrate it.
Generally speaking, both CGMs and finger stick meters are only accurate to within 20% of presumed ‘actual’ – and because CGMs test interstitial fluid as opposed to blood, the algorithm for correction to blood glucose equivalent is less likely to be accurate if blood glucose is changing rapidly. The weird thing to me is how far apart the two measures can be for 12 hours or so (with Dexcom G6) when new sensor is inserted , and then with a couple of calibrations the G6 settles down to typically within 5 to 10%, which is good. But it is important to understand that the point estimate either measure gives is only said by manufacturers to be within 20% of ‘truth’, or 20 points (using US mg/dl) when reading under 100.
Medtronic – r
I have used the Medtronic sensors since their initiation. The past 6 months I have been enrolled in a Dexcom study and was amazed at the CGM difference between the two. The accuracy of the Dexcom was far superior to the Guardian. After a 6 month study period with the Dexcom, my A1C accurately reflected the CGM results, while the Guardian readings were significantly lower than my actual BG, therefore leading to a higher A1C than would be expected from the numbers. Realizing TIR is today’s monitoring parameter, and my range is 70-140, the 20 to 30 point difference between the two sensors didn’t have much of a TIR impact.
I answered 4, recognizing that no device is as accurate as we would like. My Dexcom G6 is far more accurate than my covered meter (I am chronically anemic, and the covered meter has been shown to read higher than actual for people like me. There were some major disasters when I did a confirmation fingerstick when the Dexcom was telling me I was low or trending low. The meter said I was much higher – even high enough to require a correction bolus. Turns out the Dexcom was right.) After reading the reports, I no longer fingerstick unless I am in the warmup period, using the Contour Next meter – highest rated and paid for out of pocket.
I use Medtronic, which I know many people don’t like, but it has been working very well for me. The only times I feel it’s off is the first half day, where it will often drop dramatically right after the first calibration or two. On Day 1 I do use my meter a lot and will calibrate 2-3 times during the first 8 hours or so. Then it falls in line and future fingersticks for calibration will match the sensor readings.
So have tried CGMs twice and didn’t like them. I just got the Medtronic 770 and will wait for the 780 auto upgrade and then give their CGM a whirl. I know I need one. I do not like highs. My Endo does not like lows. So gotta have one.
When I had the dexcom I would have rated this a 4. With the Minimed connect, I rate it a 1. The Minimed Cgm’s have always been awful, and it is good to see nothing has changed. Next go round I am getting the tslim and dexcom.
Dexcom G6 seems to be accurate enough after the first 12 hours. When it’s all working correctly it’s a 5, but over the past three+ years sensor failure and early transmitter battery errors are my reasons for giving it a 4.
I recently switched from Libre1 to Libre2. I was really happy with the libre 1, but I needed Libre2 for the low sugar alarms at night. But Libre2 wakes me up with false high or low sugar alarms about twice a week and sends me into a panic. when I check my actual blood, it is completely normal. This happens about twice a week, after 2 reader replacements. It also often will not read and says instead “wait 10 minutes”.. at least twice a day.
I have mixed feeling about my cgm. Tech support is super when I need help. When the cgm works it’s really great, but lately they are really off and continually having to trouble shoot them.
It’s a vast improvement over the past history of finger sticks – it allows me to exercise and not go dangerously low and demonstrates to a stubbornly stupid endo practice how sometimes exercise dangerously increases BS levels. Yet still, the Dexcom G6 needs often calibration and I would never trust it with controlling a pump.
It was a toss-up between a 3 and a 4 – Went with the ‘4’, as I have found I test more frequently and if I’m in doubt as to the number popping up on screen, I use a finger blood test. My Diabetic Educator suggested I use the arrow direction as an indicator as to ‘what’ is going on, particularly on the 1st of the 14 days. I use the Freedom Libre, and have found it’s a ‘hit and miss’ as to how accurate any new sensor will be. Generally, the numbers are somewhat off, but once I figure out the pattern of the latest sensor, I just make that adjustment when putting the info into my pump. If I’m still doubtful of the accuracy, I’ll use the finger blood test.
I’m not really satisfied with the accuracy of my Libre 2, and answered 3. But then, comparing CGM to measuring BG with a drop of blood, I am very happy with the Libre 2.
Generally speaking, I am very happy with my Dexcom G6 CGM, which works with my Tandem Control IQ program. However, there have been a very few episodes where my blood sugars were very much out of sinc with my blood glucose levels. I have also had problems with sensors expiring early. But, I am very satisfied overall, and generally trust the accuracy of my Dexcom CGM.
Love my Dexcom G6! Overall, it seems very accurate (+/- 10-15%) until the 10th day, then calibrations seem to be needed. I know I do not adequately hydrate, so the fault may be with me and not the G6. I wish there was a report showing SG vs BG within a 5 min timeframe of testing so accuracy could be based on data.
I use Dexcom and I love it!
The dexcom cgm is not accurate it’s 40-50 points off it does not work on my phone or my husband’s phone my alarms shut off on there own so I’m done with the oh can’t live without it that everyone says.medicad has accepted meditronics cgm as of the end of march