EXCELLENT point Robyn!
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Just remember that what people discuss most is whatever problems they’re seeing. It doesn’t mean that the majority of users are having this problem, but does it mean you will.
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I have a super old android that I used when I broke my iPhone.
It had no cellular connection, but it was able to capture my readings fine.
I don’t know why you need a new iPhone, unless you mean you need it to use the Apple Watch.
The next Apple Watch might allow direct reading of your cgm.
We have to wait and see tho.
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Great know of your contentedness with that combo, thanks!
I imagine my next pump will be the 780, when it’s out, with its hybrid closed loop, assuming BC healthcare is willing to cover that. They covered the 670 I’m on, so I’ll probably use this until end of warranty anyway though (2 more years at least).
“Closed loop” feels crazy scary out of control, though. The idea that sometimes I want my levels on the low side as i have plans to eat some M&Ms and popcorn in a half hour, or that I want to be 11 mmol/200 because I plan to go for a jog in a bit.
Having said that, with a HCA1C of 7.0, maybe that pump will be better at this ‘balance thing’ than I am. The stats on people’s improved numbers look great!
I think it will have been out for a year in Europe by the time it’s approved on the market here, so I guess they’ll be the real world guinea pigs first. =)
Looking forward to hearing people’s first hand experiences!
Yup, I just need the new phone if I want to wear the watch (seeing levels without having to go find my phone is certainly appealing!)
I just got my first cel phone this year (no laughing) and am really not attached to it, so don’t often have it nearby.
I have only ever used Medtronic pumps, currently on the 770g. I am using their Guardian sensors and they work well for me. I’ve been using their sensors since the original Sof-Sensors (those worked great for me) and then the Enlites. The Enlite sensors sucked. Every single sensor was basically just a low random number generator. I gave up and did without a CGM for years. It never occurred to me to try using the Dexcom along with my Medtronic pump!
I like seeing the CGM readings right on my pump but I do not use Auto Mode. When my warranty is up in a little over a year I am thinking about switching to Tandem/Dexcom but I actually don’t really want the Tandem pump so I may just try Dexcom alongside Medtronic pump. I’m hoping when the 780g is approved here along with the next generation sensors I might change my mind.
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I’m very excited about the tandem mini pump or tsport. I saw it at a JDA event.
It’s small. It attached to your skin like a pod. But has the same infusion sets as tslim.
It also allows full control from a phone.
I’m all over that if the final product lives up to that promise.
Hybrid closed loops allow you to take over. Tslim allows me to take extra bolus and adjust basal when ever I want. I often correct before the pump does.
I really like the ability to have automatic mode and manual mode running at the same time.
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Sorry, but I’m team Android. I can’t answer much about Apple products. I don’t like the restraints of Apple systems to only use them as they want you to, whereas Android systems can pretty much be bent to your will.
I don’t have a watch, per se. I do have a FitBit Alta HR, which I figured out how to send my Dex data to. But yes, it requires my phone be nearby. It’s just a repeater of my phone notifications.
Dexcom allows your transmitter to speak directly to 2 devices: 1 medical device (T:slim X2, Omnipod PDA, Dexcom receiver, etc…) and 1 personal/mobile device (cell phone, tablet, etc…). I think that’s plenty for most people, but not everyone.
I don’t use the Dexcom app, I prefer the fully customizable Xdrip+, which is only available for Android. It doesn’t work on them all, but there are some Android watches that do work as a standalone Dexcom receiver, meaning you install the app directly to your watch rather than your phone, but I’m not aware of any way to do the same with an Apple Watch.
It wouldn’t be able to talk to your iPhone, but I suppose you could use an Android watch instead of an Apple one. It wouldn’t be much different than your pump and CGM not being able to talk to each other.
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I’ll be waiting to see it happen too, and will perhaps change my mind if the 780 is as good as they say.
"Every single sensor was basically just a low random number generator. " Love it! ha!
I have a Medtronic 630G pump and a Dexcom G6 CGM. As much as I love having the Medtronic pump, I’m absolutely bonkers in love with my Dexcom G6. I was without it for a few days while Dexcom sent me a replacement transmitter (the one I had stopped working). During that time, while I was waiting for FedEx, I had to prick my fingers again. OMG it was awful! Having been a T1D for 56+ years, I’ve seen many improvements - from having to sterilize glass syringes to disposable syringes; from testing urine glucose in a test tube using a reagent tablet to home blood glucose meters; from beef and pork Insulins to human Insulins; and, finally, to Insulin pumps and CGMs. I have used Medtronic pumps since 2005 and got an Enlite with the second one, but I was never happy with the Enlite. So I ended up putting it back in its box. But the Dexcom has become my most valuable possession. So, YES, by all means consider using the Dexcom CGM with your Medtronic pump. Having to enter the glucose result into your pump is just totally insignificant. Also, just to gild the lily a bit, when I first put a new Dexcom sensor on and the 2-hour count down is finished, I always check to see how the first reading I get matches the Contour Link Meter. So the last time I did this, the G6 registered 31 and the Contour Link registered 33. Need I say more?
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Sorry, I meant 131 and 133
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Ha! Oh good! so glad it wasn’t in the 30’s =)
Fantastic!! That’s just the reassurance I need! I’m going to do it. Time to upgrade my Apple phone so I can start!
I didn’t think Medtronic offered Enlite anymore. The latest CGM is the Guardian. I have the 670G pump and that’s what it came with. This fall they are supposed to upgrade the software on the 670G which can now be done remotely and I understand the new system won’t require calibrations like it does now.
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Hi - if you get a new pump, a 670, I understand you are right, they will put you on the better Guardian 3 sensors. But if you have an older pump, or are happy with the 630, then the *Enlite is the only sensor that works with it, so they are continuing to manufacture and offer them. [EDIT - apparently that’s not true… the Guardian3s evidently CAN work with the 630]
Hopefully one day I’ll have a 780G system, but until then I’ll try then-integrated combo of my Medtronic 630 with the Dexcom, just to see if it is preferable.
=)
I think you are mistaken about this. I was using the Guardian transmitters & sensors with a Medtronic 630 before I switched to the Tandem I am currently using.
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Oh That IS good to know. Maybe I’ll try the Guardian 3s! (If unhappy with the Dexcom) and abandon those Enlites entirely!
Thanks!
I use the G6 and a 670G pump. The Enlites and the original Guardians were horrible - erratic, indicate need for BG check 10 times of 6 (about 40% false alarms) and weren’t actionable. For me, G6 readings are actionable. However, I wouldn’t use without periodic calibration, partly necessitated by running (relatively) flat narrow and in-range.
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I cannot say which is better, but these were my experiences: When i got my first pump in 2008 it was Medtronics with a CGM. The two technologies didn’t talk to each other. Still, after so many years of insulin injections and finger tests, i was amazed. And the system was accurate. About 5 years ago i was upgraded to the then-latest Medtronics pump & integrated CGM. It was wildly inaccurate. So much so my endocrinologist moved any patient that was willing to Dexcom G5. Accurate and reliable. No coordination between the 2 devices, but i did not miss what i did not have, and still so much better than finger sticks. When the G5 was out of warranty, i was talked into the Dexcom G6. G6 is mostly accurate, but sometimes a sensor fails. I’ve been awakened with an alert that BG is 50, but a finger check shows 100. I switch to a new sensor immediately. That has happened maybe 2 to 3 times a year. G6 has other issues from sensors falling off constantly (I use a skin glue to keep them on longer); you cannot use acetaminophen - too much makes the sensor inaccurate; to the transmitter lasts precisely 3 months and you only get one at a time. This means you may go a few days to a week or more with no working system; others have reported they can use an Apple device with a downloaded app to re-programme the transmitter and extend the battery life. Those who experiment find that in spite of the fact that Dexcom insists their sensor be on your abdomen, upper arms also work reliably. (When sensors fail Dexcom will replace them at no charge - as long as you tell them you followed their rules. If the transmitter fails, depending on its age, they will replace that too.) Except when swimming, i wear the receiver so i don’t have to keep my phone nearby. There are pros and cons to each manufacturer’s technology and their business model.
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that sounds like great advice - thanks so much!
thanks so much for taking the time to share all your experiences! (I plan to read it to my husband later)
=)