I was ready to bag the G6 and return to G5 because of some of these same issues. Two things brought me back into the fold and now I’m very pleased with G6 performance
Presoak to avoid bad performance during day1 (and sometimes day 2)
Use very light pressure during insertion. Place the inserter on the skin until the adhesive just touches the skin - then push the button
I learned the former from this site (you’ll find many recent posts about it here so I won’t belabor the details).
The second suggestion came from the local Dexcom rep. Never heard about it from their tech support.
Now I’m getting outstanding accuracy and stability right from the start. I rarely lose a sensor before day 10.
I also starting getting my sensor through my pharmacy plan instead of major medical and have avoided the delivery problems I experienced sourcing directly from Dexcom. Not sure if delivery is still and issue.
Shortly after I started on the G6, I spoke with a CDE on the Dex Tech Support line. She noted that I could pinch/bunch-up the skin like I used to do with the G4. That works pretty well where I can use two hands, like on the abdomen, but not so much for the arm insertion.
Yeah, I can understand. My dexcom has not been very accurate today. It is off saying I have an urgent low and when I tested the finger stick said I was in the 5mmol range. My doc says that these cgms are less accurate on the low side. If the data isn’t accurate then you really can’t go by what the reports say.
My experience has been equal. I tried the arm because of out-and-out failures, not accuracy. I went to the arm on the recommendation of several IRL D-friends.
I have seen other locations used with success, including the calf. I can’t imagine that for me.
I reserve my lower abdomen for my CGM sites and use the middle and upper for my infusion sets.
I divide my infusion set locations into a total of 8 areas, 4 on the left and four on the right. With a site change every 3 days that gives me 24 days before I get back to the same general area.
I had a scare a few years ago with my rear love handle area but then I realized I had fallen into a habit of always placing sets in about the same spot.
After my previous post about the good information I received from Dexcom Patient Care and it’s superiority to normal TS, I got a call today from Dexcom TS replying to an e-mail I sent about the same topic. Low and behold, she told me the calibration rule was 30/30. I questioned her answer, and she told me to look in the manual, to which I asked for a page reference. After about a 3 minute hold she came back and awkwardly told me the guidance had been changed, removed from the manual but she didn’t know about it!!! BTW, neither rule is in the manual.
I couldn’t find it on the Dexcom site or literature. It wasn’t an exhaustive check. I decided to call. Plenty of references outside of Dexcom, but nothing I considered authoritative.
Maybe that’s why the Doc didn’t know this rule. Maybe Dex G6 is still kinda a new device and we are all in the process of working this stuff out, formally.
BTW, I found the 20/20 rule in the old G4 documentation under calibration. So, they really are reverting back to older techniques that I probably should have been familiar with. But, it is confusing because there’s contradictory stuff in the G6 docs.
I’ve heard that Abbott has a three-sensor limit for the Libre. I’ve had three sensors replaced by them, so I’ll find out next time I call.
I had way more than three sensors replaced by Dexcom. Never any questions asked (though this was several years ago with G4 sensors, so may have changed).
G6 shuts down when I calibrate. It asks for another calibration after a period of time, then doesnt accept it. and asks for another calibration after a period of time.
I was able to getting it running after a few hours today.
I miss my G4. Someday I will tell my grandchildren about the “good ol’ days” when the G4 existed.
P.S. If you bump into problems, message @Marie20. She has insider knowledge that might interest you, lol.
And One Touch reads high on people who are anemic. I wish there were regulations that followup FD evaluations had to happen once meters are on the market
The Contour has about the best MARD, if that’s the right way to phrase it. The Contour is supposed to be less than 5% off of laboratory tests of blood glucose. It’s my understanding that if you want to check your meter’s accuracy, you should do a finger stick within a few minutes of getting lab work done where they check your actual blood glucose.
I have a ContourNext, and the last time that I compared it to lab results, it was only about 3% off. On the other hand, I usually calibrate my G6 on the first day, somestimes more than once, and occasionally the second day, too. After that, I usually get G6 readings 0 to 10% off of my ContourNext. I try to do a comparison every 1-3 days, depending on how much trouble I had on the first few days.
I’ve been using my G6 for almost a year. I used to use Medtronic sensors with my 670G, but they drove me nuts. I’ve only had 3 of my G6 sensors fail before the end of the session. I don’t like to put up with the G6 being more than 15% off because my blood sugar levels can be erratic. I like to be sure to head off sudden BG changes.
Just read through this entire thread - made my head spin. I’ve been using Libre for almost a year and considering switching to Dexcom as I’m starting Omnipod in 10 days. Never thought about what’s accurate or not - now I’m confused
