I wore the Medtronic sensor for a couple of years and have been off for a couple of years. I loved some things about it and got very frustrated with others (sensor restarts and missed lows mostly). Anyone switch to Dexcom? How do they compare? Is the good worth having to carry the receiver around?
When I was going on CGM I tried out both. Medtronic has a lot of bells and whistles that are nice, but Dexcom was far more accurate and useful. Plus the sensor is good for 7 days as opposed to 3 for Medtronic.
I’ve had both. HATED the MM CGM. LOVE the Dexcom CGM. It is absolutely worth having to carry another receiver around.
The main things for me are accuracy and pain free. I don’t even know the Dexcom sensor is in and it doesn’t hurt at all during insertion.
I have zero complaints on the Dexcom.
I almost always get 10 -14 days out of mine. Just keep restarting until the tape doesn’t stick any more. 
I was on the MM for about 3 years and now that I am on the Dexcom I can see just how bad the MM one is. Accuracy on the MM for me was a joke, with only about 30-40% accuracy rate. Calibration was a nightmare for me on the MM. If I wasn’t within about 20-30 points I would get a Cal Error and then the sensor was toast.
The needle on the MM is HUGE! I have to say I like the Dexcom a lot better.
I used the MM CGMS for over 3 years, and switched to Dexcom 6 months ago. Same as others… less pain, more accurate, less frustrating, easier calibration, no big deal to have ‘another’ device to carry - in fact easier because I can keep in on table/desk and don’t have to keep tucking any tubing back in !
Best of all, improved my A1C after 3 months using Dex.
Definitely would not switch back.
I did a trial week with Dexcom before the switch. You could contact Dexcom and see if they can set you up and see for yourself.
Okay, thanks everyone. You have given me the certainty to move forward with the Dexcom. I will let you know how it goes!
I am currently on the Dexcom and I do like alot about the system. I need a machine that can help me with the lows and the highs. I am having trouble hearing the system. I hope that they change the alarms and make them louder. I am used to the Freestyle navigator and that had different adjustments for the alarms. This does not. Not convinced yet that I like it yet . Love the size and no batteries. Just need to hear when I am low or high. That is one of the major needs for these machines. If Medtronic alarms are better I may have to switch . Does anybody know if the alarms are worth making the switch from .
I just switched from Medtronic’s CGM to Dexcom about five weeks ago. The comparison is unbelievable! For me, the Dex is so much more accurate it is scary. The Medtronic was way more convenient with everything right in the pump, but I will carry an extra receiver with the accuracy of Dexcom any day. My endocrinologist told me that about 75% of her patients who switched were very satisfied.
I am another Dexcom user who used the Medtronic system for over 2-1/2 years. Dexcom is a million times better for me. It is much more accurate and much less painful.
There are some negatives for me also. I use the Medtronic Revel pump and I really miss the integration of the pump with the CGMS. I hate carrying a second device. Also the Medtronic system has a lot more information available. You can scroll backwards and get actual BG readings. With the Dexcom you only get the current reading and then can see graphs for the past. The Medtronic system has information on when your sensor will expire. With Dexcom you just wait until it tells you the sensor is about to expire.
In my opinion the Medtronic system is far superior to Dexcom in how it handles information. There are more ways to customize your settings, for example different alert ranges for day and night. It’s fabulous only having one device to carry with you, if you’re a Medtronic pump user. The are predictive alerts which are missing from Dexcom.
BUT–because the info I got from the Medtronic sensor was garbage, it didn’t matter how well the pump manipulated and used that information. It was garbage in, garbage out.
My Dexcom is usually in the ballpark of my meter readings. Sometimes the Dexcom readings lag a bit, but that is the nature of interstitial readings. If the Dexcom is off, 90% of the time it is heading to where my meter reading is. Often it is very close, especially once I get past the first two days of a sensor. I usually get about 2 weeks from each sensor. More often that not, it is pain and itching from the tape I use to hold the sensor down that makes me change the sensor. I’ve ordered Opsite Flexifix that many people here recommend and I hope it will help.
In the best of all worlds, I would have the accuracy of the Dex combined with the information and pump integration of the Medtronic system. Unfortunately that’s not possible in the USA right now. But given the choice between the two systems, I would buy the Dexcom system every time.
Hi gary, great to hear, we are looking at adding dexcom to my daughter’s omnipod therapy, I’m a pediatrician so I’ve been working on getting a loaner from our rep so she can just try it out. How many weeks did it take you to adjus to the technology? (she is 11)
I tried the Dexcom…it hurt me too much. This week, I tried the Medtronic. I had to take it out before I left the Dr’s office. That hurt too much as well…
I guess I am just not a candidate for either.
Once you use a CGM your , or at least my, anxiety drops quite a bit. I know at a glance what my sugar is approximately and if it has been steady, I am very comfortable that it is what I see on the monitor.
I remember saying to someone that the CGM has made me lazy in terms of tracking blood sugars, because I give myself a bolus and if a high or low alarm goes off, then I have to adjust and grab something to eat or add a small amount of insulin because my guess was off.
Then I thought to myself, that is not lazy, that is just getting me closer to the normal world where your sugars and swings are not the primary thought or rumination in your life. It is like an administrative assisstant keeping track of the minute to minute minutia, and letting you go, to focus on bigger things and life things.
I have the Medtronic CGM and pump combo. I have tried and like the OmniPod system. I have no idea why but that lack of tubing is soooo refreshing. Medtronic does have some great and fancy software. However, with a pump and a CGM, the trends become apparent very quickly and you adjust a basil pattern or your bolus calculation rations and things smooth out.
I am still using the Medtronic CGM but not the pump, because I am uning the OmniPod. I understand my trends and I am comfortable with the information, so the Medtronic reports have less importance to me. What is important to me is size and ease of the equipment. And that is more of a priority to me than an integrated system. Which Medtronic does, and does well. And I would recommend it to others in a second.
I am looking for a deal on the Dex right now. Size and weight does matter. And I also wish the OmniPod controller also get a lot smaller too.
The Dex is also approved for a much longer usage. It is not infusing insulin, so a CGM will not tick off the skin tissue as much as a cannula. great! Trying to switch an insulin cartridge while you are charging up another sensor transmitter and keeping everything straight in you mind, well is tricky if you are busy with work, family, God forgive.... just ordinary life. So I never was able to follow the Medtronic guidelines to change both devices at the same time.
I hope, that if I can get the Dex CGM, that they will have a good small holster for it. All of this junk must be with you at all time and it would be great if that fact was made easier by the manufacturers. I am currently custom fitting a quick release swivel clip to my OmniPod controller. The controller is a little large and the holster does not swivel. Oh well.
Kind of a long reply but I think I covered some of what you needed.
One last point! and it is a big one! If my Blood sugars are on a serious dive, the Medtronic sensor system gets really far off in the short term. And they do not have an alarm for repeated drops, which would warn you that the values you are seeing are getting out of wack, from 30 to 50 points below what your blood sugar really is and what you are seeing on the screen. I know this and I adjust for this if I see continual drops, even for a short time frame.
I have yet to see the Dex results but I hope this deficiency will be less problematic with them.
Good luck!
Tom P
Your daughter will not have any trouble with the technology, it's really simple. I'm a 51 and technology challenged and it's a piece of cake. The learning curve is really more with learning how to feel comfortable with the dex in your life, meaning what low and high alarms and settings you are comfortable with and learning which sites are more comfortable and work best for you. I've only used a dex for about a month and wish I'd had it years ago.
I agree with Lathump's review on every point, as we also were Medtronic Revel users for my 6 year old daughter. I loved many of the points about how the Medtronic handled the information, and the ability to program the alarms for High/lows, but it just wasn't accurate enough for us. So often we lost the connection even when the pump was by the sensor, and it irritated my daughter badly. We also had to tape it down with big tagaderm, which is no longer needed with the Dex, saving a lot of money there. My stress is less with the Dex as I only have to change the sensor once a week and the needle is much less paintful for my daughter. And, for a 6 year old, she loves that she can read the Dex receiver herself and push the buttons easier than on the Revel.
I was so eager for the MySentry to come out, I think it's something parents with D-kids really need, but if the information isn't accurate, then it's not going to do us any good anyways, so we'll just hope the Dex develops something similar.
Thank you Gary! I hated the MM CGM, and Feb 7th, will start a 7 day trial of the Dexcom and if all goes well, which after reading all these postings, am sure it will, will order one! Nice to hear so many positive things about the Dexcom. Most important is that needle gauge and accurate readings!
Actually getting excited about a new CGM.