Saturday, June 4, 2011

CGM Opinions Wanted

I know most of you have them....opinions and CGMs.  :)

We are moving towards a CGM for Bean.  It just makes sense to be able to know what's going on 'in between' those finger pricks and to know if she's steady, heading up or heading down.

The clinic we go to supports one kind and we're partial to another kind.  
This is where you come in, my wonderful D-moms, D-dads and PWD.  HELP!!


Why did you choose the CGM you or your child uses?

Why didn't you choose another one...if you looked into other options?

Did it play a part in your decision that the CGM was 'supported' by your clinic?


I will treat all comments as opinions, not medical advice.  I will consult Bean's NP and CDE before we place an order for a CGM.  I will not like you more or less because of your choice of CGM or your opinion concerning it. :)

THANKS!!

12 comments:

  1. I understand dexcom is kind of a leader in the field -- and it was also the one recommended to us. obviously everyone knows i love it b/c i blog about the dex so much -- even tho it's certainly not perfect. Great customer service, too. roselady

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  2. The Dexcom seven plus appealed the most to us, and our endo likes it the best as well. So we went with it. We love it! Love, love, love it! Its numbers aren't always accuracurate (though often they are), but its direction arrows are always spot on. We use it as a compass to help guide our moves.

    It is very easy to insert and use. We've only had one bad sensor and Dexcom replaced it. Dexcom customer service has been excellent.

    If you have any questions or if I can help in any way, let me know. :)

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  3. We chose Dexcom because of it's partnership with Animas. It is meant to be used for 7 days but can usually get 10-14. We have a lot of issues with inaccurate numbers and errors but overall, I think it is VERY useful in figuring out where a bg is headed. Customer service is great and they will replace any sensor that errors or doesn't last the full 7 days.

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  4. Another vote for Dexcom here. They were going to be my first choice anyway, since I have a neighbor that actually works for Dexcom, so I have known about it from the beginning.

    That said, we have been one of the unlucky who have had lots of problems with it. BUT, Dexcom customer service is amazing, and have replaced everything we've needed to replace.

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  5. We use the dex too but we did trial the mm first and it was awful. I will look for that post and give you the link it had allpros and cons for both.

    We get 14 days out if or sensor with amazing accuracy. Dex rocks for us!

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  6. We recently started Charlotte on a Dexcom Seven Plus. I had been to a conference for work a couple years ago and attended a session about CGMs...and visited the vendor tables for Dexcom, Medtronic, and Abbott to learn about the options. I approached our endo directly with a request for the Dexcom and he didn't question or guide elsewhere...probably because he knows that C is on an Animas pump and the technology will eventually link up between the 2 companies. I liked it best because of the reports about sensor insertion not being as painful...and knowing that the sensor lasts longer than the other options available. We've loved it so far...although it's not been perfect....we've had some issues with a failed sensor and the numbers aren't always the most accurate...but as others have said the arrows to show which direction we're headed are very nice. It's helped guide our basal insulin tweaking for her pump. Hope that's helpful...I know there's lots of info out there....Kerri at SUM has reviews from a few years back when she 1st tried out the Dex and Medtronic CGMs which shed some light on things when we 1st started thinking about heading in this direction

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  7. Well, we trialed the Medtronic Guardian when Joe was four. I HATED IT. JOE HATED IT. The insertion needle is long...big...still is...they are working on it. The calibration rules are ridonculous (may have changed now) but in the past we had to wait til Joe's BG was ... ahemm... "stable" and then we could calibrate. Also, the start up time was long...like hours upon hours until you could do your first calibration. It was WAY off. The correlation to real-time BG was horrible. Sorry that I sound so negative about Medtronics CGM...but I.HATED.IT.

    Dexcom. More accurate. 2Hr calibration wait time. Blood sugar lability not an issue with calibration. MUCH.SMALLER.INSERTION.NEEDLE. It is easy to use. Love it for trending. Not always accurate...don't use it for accuracy...I use it for trending and boosting with activity. 'NUF SAID. DEXCOM.ALL.THE.WAY. No pressure though. You know what will work for you fam. xoxo

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  8. We started with the Minimed because it integrates with her pump and, despite use of EMLA, it often hurt when EMLA wore off; as well as having to wait to calibrate until BGs were somewhat in range. It was not very accurate. Believe we hit a nerve the last time we inserted and that was the end for us. If using Minimed sensor, I would use the tush area, not the arm, like we did. Dexcom can be inserted without EMLA; she claims she does not feel it. There have been times Dex was not very accurate and we relied mostly on the trending arrows; it seems as if it takes a solid month for Dex to learn your BS patterns; was pretty accurate after a month or two of use. Dex hands down, but we really want and need integration as she balks at wearing it, not because of the pain; just because she doesn't want to carry around the extra Receiver. And too old to wear pump pouches.

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  9. We also have a Dexcom. I didn't look at any of the others because we use the animas pump.

    Like everyone else... Sometimes it is spot on with the meter and sometimes it is out in left field. But I think that is the same with any of them. I pay most attention to the trending.

    I do like that it lasts longer than medronic. However, I have never even tried to push it longer than the 7 days.

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  10. I'm on the Medtronic sensor because it links up with my pump and I didn't want to carry around another device. Also, the trial I did worked well for me and I like Medtronic so I was sold. You do have to wait nearly 2 hours before you can calibrate, and it automatically times out every 3 days (but you can just re-start it). I've noticed it's more on target when you calibrate during stable times. I've heard good things about the dex though and I am still kind of curious about it!

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  11. We tried the Navigator awhile ago...probably a few generations ago, so our experience may not count...but it wasn't fun. The insertion sites bled, it took 10 hours to get started, and it wasn't hardly ever accurate.

    We have Dexcom now. Most of the time it's within 10 points...we have a hard time keeping the adhesive in place now that swim season is here (even still, the Navigator adhesive was worse).

    Insulet has a combined Dexcom awaiting FDA approval. I have no idea where things stand with that, but I know there's a prototype already constructed, and waiting to make it to market. It uses the current, Dex 7 sensors...not sure if Insulet is trying to redesign it with the Gen4 sensors that haven't made it through the FDA yet either.

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  12. Well, you know we love our Dexcom. LOVE. it saved her life. Honestly. I can not express my love enough for it! We didn't have any other option. BUT.... I love it and wouldn't trade it for anything. I've got lots of posts about it, too!

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Hey, Thanks for sharing!! Your comments make me :)!!
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