Caleb has been using G4 since November 2012 (Seven Plus for three years prior to that). In the past several weeks, we have experienced an excessive amount of ??? for extended periods of time, including at start up. It is a sudden and dramatic difference to what we had been seeing. Before this, he did not get much more than seven days worth of use of a sensor, but it was a solid seven days.
We have used several different sensors, from at least two different batches. Although he is swimming often and sweating a lot, I cannot correlate the ??? with these activities. An example would be inserting a new sensor after a shower and going to sleep in an air conditioned home and still experiencing ??? all night long.
He is not taking acetaminophen. There is nothing pressing on it or obstructing it. The transmitter is securely placed. There is no moisture between the transmitter and the sensor.
I have heard from other users that they experienced ??? after six to eight months of use, replaced the transmitter and the problem resolved. The warranty for the transmitter is six months due to the expected battery life.
The "Device Info" shows "Ok" for both the old and the new transmitters.
I have replaced the transmitter with a brand new one and still have ??? - of the 24 hours of the sensor, 2 of them had readings - the rest ???. After 7 hours of start up, it asked for 2 bgs, but would not accept any. After another 7 hours, it again asked for 2 bgs, and that's when we had 2 hours of readings.
DexCom CS has stated plainly that ??? indicate that the readings of the sensor are not being read - that ??? is a sensor specific issue. The sensor needs to be placed where there is enough interstitial fluid to get readings. We use the back of Caleb's arms and rotate around within each arm as much as we can.
Open to others' thoughts and experiences. Thank you.
I know that many users on this site talk about success using the back of the arm for sensor placement. However, it is a known fact that the only “approved” site is the abdomen. Have you tried placing it on Caleb’s stomach? Seems to me it would be worth the try.
I got mine in December. never has ??? issues until now. I go an hour or 2 with ???, plan to call Dex, then it comes back on. It can happen anytime, day 1 to day 10. I am now thinking out batteries are failing. How long have others gone past the 6 month period?
Just ordered a replacement sensor for the same issue - lasted 3 days - One before it only went 6 days.
So - I went ahead and ordered a new transmitter since it's over the 6 months.
(I think I started a week or so after Caleb.)
Not sure if this helps but I find I get more of the ??? when the battery is not fully charged. I don't know how low you let the battery go but try charging it at least once a day to a full charge.
We had the same experience. I was going thru 3 sensors a week. It took me months to work it out but finally have gotten the G4 to work right. 1. The g4 is more sensitive so the only that can touch the skin at the insertion point is alcohol. We use skin prep and skin tac, and would always wipe around the insertion point, but if we didn’t get it exactly right it wasn’t a big deal with the 7+ . The g4 is not forgiving so if you get it wrong bye bye sensor. 2. I have had to insert on an angle (as well as continue to pinch up) into my very skinny kid’s arm which I never had to do on the 7+. That way you insure to go into fat. These two items have solved most of my problems with the g4.
I know - me neither. I was also told by my local trainer that the skin tac shouldn't cause a problem with the G4. However, I got less ??? when we made sure to always wipe around the insertion site. We are talking about a four year old though with frequent wild swings in blood sugars which I am sure causes us more issues with the G4 in general.
Hi metheniac. Thanks. Yes, we've always known where the sensors are approved and that they are not yet approved for children. Caleb uses his abs for Pods, so that placement hasn't been an option for us.
Good to know. We use Skin Tac, but not on his skin. I soak the adhesive before applying it so the insertion spot is clean. I heard about the benefits of pinching up with G4 early on, so we've always gotten a nice meaty grab when inserting. :)
The only sensor with which I used the new transmitter was the one that was already in and not working with the older transmitter. I took off that site. Turns out, Caleb has a slight infection at the site. That has always resulted in ??? when it's happened in the past. So that test is not reliable, and does not resolved the larger issue since he hasn't otherwise had infections.
I placed a new sensor on his leg with the new transmitter last night and haven't seen a single ??? yet. Maybe it's the transmitter as other users have found after all! I will keep you posted.
Hi Lorraine...I hope Caleb is feeling better. I just started using my G4 about a month ago. I placed it on my stomach for the first 2 weeks but experienced pain there so I moved the next one around towards my hip. The fourth week, I placed in totally on my hip and after 48 hours got ???'s. That episode resolved itself but the next night I got the ???'s again. After 3 hours, the problem didn't resolve so I called tech support.The rep asked me if the sensor pad was flush with my skin. Because of the contour of the hip, it's difficult to have the pad always flush to the skin. I know that the arm is a great site for Caleb although it has contour. I'm suspicious that the contour may be a problem at times. Just a thought.
He's had success with this leg sensor. Just petered out this morning.
The contour issue is an interesting point. After years of using this spot successfully and then have the ??? come out of nowhere, it makes me think it was more than that. Not sure where the next sensor will be. I'll report back. :)
Hi Lo, The Dexcom is great but very challenging. It does sound more like a technical issue with the transmitter/receiver rather then a site issue. I wish you and Caleb the best of luck with it. And hoping for no more site infections for Caleb! :-)
