Dexcom Quality Control Track Record

Hi. I JUST joined, and I’m glad I found the forum. My very first Q may have been asked and answered but I’ll ask anyway.

I see from the msgs I’ve read so far that many of us have issues of one kind or another with our pumps, our CGM sensors, etc. Me too. Mine have to do with erratic performance of my Dex G6 sensors: Signal dropout even when pump and sensor are less than a foot apart; compression causing ridiculously wrong BG readings (not to mention waking me up at 3 am to tell me this!) when I sleep on my “sensor side”; etc. Lately it seems I have not gotten thru a single 10-day session without some sensor misbehavior! As a retired engineer with experience in technical quality assurance and quality control, I’d like to know if anyone has credible evidence from Dexcom themselves that they are doing something serious about the kinds of issues many of us here seem to be experiencing with what I’d consider is an unacceptable frequency.

Anytime you sleep on the sensor side you can expect your sensor to have difficulty. Pressing the site can make your sensor run high or low (for me it is low) and communication is very tricky. I do not use this particular sensor, but it is a common issue.

Much better to accept the limitations of the product(s) and adapt accordingly because although Dexcom keeps improving their product line, it is still a product that is decades away from perfection for all body types in all conditions. Compression lows, for example are really self inflicted due to sensor placement where transmitter periodically gets buried in the mattress during sleep. It is just a matter of finding a few areas of the body where you can insert your sensors to keep them from getting buried. Do you usually sleep on your sides?, Back? stomach? There is always a few free spots somewhere that work.

The challenges just need to be dealt with one by one. Where there is the will, there is a way.

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Almost a year with Dexcom and very rare dropouts. It talks to both my phone and my pump (which I just got a few weeks ago).
I rotate the sensor from the upper triceps area, one side to the other. I sleep on either side or my back. I don’t really have a position where that causes compression lows or only maybe once every few months. Loss of signal is similarly rare.

I also have trouble with the signal. But I’ve sort of learned to deal with it by keeping my pump and sensor at the same side.
My phone too.

As for compression issues, when you lay on your sensor, you slow down or stop the normal flow of interstitial fluid.

Then it gets out of sync with your blood glucose.
Not much dexcom can do about that.

I place my sensors so I won’t lay on them. In my arm it sits behind on my triceps. I never sleep on my back so I never compress it.

The dex g6 is the best cgm I’ve seen so far. It’s not perfect.
I’m hoping the g7 is better

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