before we lost our health insurance this summer I got them to buy Jesse a dexcom, since his nav died........
A friend just gave me 2 boxes of sensors that expire 10/2010.. We did use expired nav sensors when we had them... So, can I assume that the Dex sensors will work too???
By the way - he loves the Dex - way better than the Nav...
If the sensors are expired they can be pretty spotty (from experience). Some will work perfectly and others will not work at all. You’ll know after having them on for about a day.
Stacey,
I use expired dexcom sensors a lot. I have never had issues with them not working at all.
You may wish to simply call Dexcom and see if they would be willing to swap them out for non-expired sensors. Stranger things have happened.
It all depends on the storage conditions.
If your friend kept them cool, and DID NOT freeze them, then their lifespan will be so close to the lifespan of “fresh” ones that you might not even be aware of the difference. But, if they spent even an hour or two in the mailbox, at 95F, then they might have been damaged a lot.
I just put in my last Sensor of that date (10/2010) last night. And I’ll be disappointed if I don’t get two full weeks. But I keep them in a special “vegetable compartment” of our refrigerator, at about 45F. (This is high-end refrigerator, that bin is completely separate from the rest of the refrigerator section, and has it’s own temperature control.) That’s a lot warmer than a regular refrigerator, which should be 35-37F.
Don’t put Dex Sensors in the bottom, or the back, of a regular refrigerator compartment- there’s too much risk of freezing them. Any cool place is great, and regular in-home storage is fine unless you let it go above 80F for extended periods.
I’ve never put sensors in the fridge, ever. I fail to see the reason for doing that, really. They are not like insulin. And I don’t keep my fingerstick strips in the fridge either.
I just keep the sensors and strips in a closet, in their box. Controlled temperature and humidity, that’s what is needed. But not a fridge.
Am I wrong? I should maybe go back to reading the notes in the sensors box…
Ciao, Luca
Luca, you’re almost 100% right. (And DEFINITELY not “wrong”). Let me explain why I do this:
Exactly as you just said, they’re not like insulin. But a lot of the chemistry is very close to that used in fingerstick strips. High temps, over a long period of time, cause a portion of the glucose oxidase to react- even though there’s no glucose actually present.
Since I’m often outdoors in very high temperatures for long periods of time, storing them “perfectly”, instead of just “good enough”, prevents a significant loss of lifespan. They’re often left outside, in the heat, following delivery too- and here at 6000 ft, in the desert, sunlight can cook cardboard like a frying pan.
If your closet was VERY warm, you’d start seeing them perform badly after a couple of months. But you’re right: normal closets, in houses where air conditioners keep it under 75-80F, don’t need special attention at all. Treat 'em like strips, they’ll do fine.
Makes sense, Rick.
The issue I have with the fridge is the humidity which might cause dew on the sensor’s most critical part, the wire, before insertion. The bag is sealed, yes, but there is no silica gel inside, so a slight risk exists.
Ciao, Luca