Like Laddie, mine last about 3 weeks average, longest one lasted about 25 days I wear mine on my stomach. Don’t like how much the transmeitter sticks out so I don’t use my arm. The accuracy is unbelievable. When the tandem closed loop pump gets aprooved in combo with the G5 sensor, I will upgrade my pump to that one. I don’t trust Medtronic anymore. Too many years of too much lyinging about the Enlite’s accuracy and air bubbles in the reservoir.
Did anyone else notice that the thread becomes very prone to breaking off when the sensor been used for 14+ days? The thread cracks at the slightest bend.
Nah, that’s only if you have molecular acid instead of human blood. 
(Alien)
Bigfoot announced last July that it is beginning an exclusive relationship with Abbott’s Libre sensor system. The Libre is a flash glucose monitor, not a continuous glucose monitor. To get a glucose reading with the Libre requires an electronic inquiry by a hand-held receiver.
It’s likely that a future Bigfoot system would turn this flash monitor into a continuous monitor in that the manual BG inquiry would be automated. I think Bigfoot Biomedical provides hope that the insulin pump/CGM systems will not be completely dominated by Medtronic.
I’ve found that keeping it dry helps it last much longer. I cover mine when I shower which helps a lot. The more wet the sensor tape gets, the more quickly it tends to loosen. I also cover it with IV3000 tape after it starts to loosen. IV3000 comes off very easily without loosening the sensor tape. I make a cutout for the transmitter and just place the IV3000 tape over the sensor. Also use skin tac with the sensor and IV3000 tape which helps the sensor and tape stick to my skin.
I tried keeping my sensor dry one time in a shower but it was a pain in the butt to try to secure it so now I just dry off the tape with a hair dryer set on low.
Is it safe to wear something inserted in the skin that long? My pump site is supposed to be rotated every 3 days, my entire sensorvevery 6. Hospital iv changes happen every few days too. Risk of scar tissue and infection maybe?
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There’s a big difference between the recommended length of time for leaving in an infusion set in and leaving in a sensor. A constant flow of insulin going into one spot can cause toughening of tissues. That doesn’t happen with the tiny sensor since there’s no chemical constantly infusing into the subcutaneous tissues. Besides which, many people report reduced absorption after a certain length of time and that could be as little as one and a half days.
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I’m with you Dave44. I’m using the G4 receiver which uses the same sensor as G5. Often I will get ??? exceeding 3 hours (or sometimes with 3 or 4 intermittent readings during the 3 hour period) before 7 days pass. I can get 10 to 15 days occasionally when inserted on right side of belly.
Guess I should try an alternative site (back of arm or upper thigh) but with slim build (BMI of 19.2) I’m hesitant to use a site that may irritate muscle during activities as well as sleeping on the sensor itself as I toss and turn.
Because I mostly sleep on my right side, I’m not going to tempt fate by putting a sensor on the right side of my abdomen. All of my G5’s have so far been located on the left, about a foot from my belly button, and a few inches above the belt-line. I tried alternate sites when I used Enlites, with not great success, but then again, I had very few sensors that were accurate, in more than a year of using them. I might take a chance though, on a back-of-the-arm placement w/ a G5.
I alternate sides for every sensor directly in line with navel except I attempt to insert slightly above or below last used site. The insert site is 3" or slightly more from navel. Ever since switching to SkinTac I have not had any issues with the occasional lying slightly on the sensor. Perhaps next time I use left side I should offset to about 4" to see if the 3" location is used up and no longer good.
1 good thing about failure in less than a week is if sensor fails before day 7, with the free replacement I get ~12 days of Dexcom use for the price of 1 sensor.
I had been including in rotation, the bicycle tire area just below the ribs but had trouble with sensor tape coming loose and occasionally irritating a nerve (or muscle).
same here.
I usually use my G5 sensor for 2 weeks, but I’ll try longer periods after reading this thread. I keep the sensor 100% dry by using 3M Tegaderm Transparent Dressing with Label 4" x 4 3/4" (10 x 12 cm)50 per Box #1626W
Tegaderm. I cut out an oval patch of Bounty paper towel to cover the sensor and patch. After two weeks the sensor and patch are in very good condition, not sure if anybody showers with theirs without protection, but I have never done that. It also seems like pushing down and injecting deeper when applying the new sensor works better. I’m type 1, 6’ 1" and 170 lbs, so fairly thin, but I do have enough of a stomach to get good penetration. I think the key to longevity is keeping the sensor and patch dry.
Yerp. Nothing. G5 and water.
On the occasions with ??? after a shower, pop the transmitter, clean with alcohol, wait a couple mins and slap it back on.
We get 12 days pretty consistently. Plus or minus a day. When the data gets all wobbly and starts to scatter then it is time for a new sensor.
I shower without covering mine and able to keep it for 2 weeks without issue.
As you can notice, I am French. I thank Laddie for her nice presentation. I use G4 sensors for 3 years. These are the same as the G5. Like Laddie, I changed my sensors to be sure to have a reliable one at important events. In general, I kept them for 3 to 4 weeks. I decided to do a duration test and wait until the end of life of the one I am currently wearing. I’m at day 42 and everything is OK.
I insert the sensors inside the thigh in the zone of the adductor muscle at a place where there is no risk of friction. There is also no risk of pressing the sensor while sleeping.
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I am finding we get less life out of our sensors since switching from the G4 to the G5. We used to get two weeks on the G4, now it starts to show wonkiness just after the 7 day mark and hits the skids for the next few days.
I have been getting 2 weeks minimum with G5 sensors, sometimes close to 3 weeks. I am a serious taper…multiple layers with everything well bonded using Skintac.
I have recently switched from belly to back of upper arm and believe I’m getting longer life there…time will tell. It usually takes me a half hour to get it taped down to my liking because it’s a little awkward back there on the arm. Showers and heavy sweat do not seem to degrade the tape as quickly on upper arm compared to belly.
Last night my sensor gave me ??? so late that by the time I could install a new sensor, I couldn’t calibrate til nearly 11PM. I was on day 11. So far, longest run has been 12.
As stated in my answer to Laddie, I am using the CGMS Dexcom G4 continuously for more than 3 years. Sensors G4 and G5 are exactly the same.
In my opinion, there are 4 phenomena that can determine the lifetime of the sensor. However, it is difficult to know which one or ones are predominant.
1- Site of insertion and care taken during insertion and during use.
My experience:
1st year: insertion horizontally in the abdomen.
The following 2 years: insertion vertically in the inner thigh by choosing a place where there is no risk of friction with the other thigh and no risk of pressure on the sensor while sleeping.
I have always followed Dexcom’s recommendations regarding asepsis (washing with soap and, after drying, with alcohol the location of insertion and the hands ; also washing with alcohol the transmitter at each change of sensor) .
Let dry alcohol before inserting the sensor.
During use, be careful that the adhesive patch of the sensor does not become loose at the periphery and especially that there is no creation of small tunnels under the patch in which fluids or moisture could penetrate.
After a week, I stick around the adhesive patch Tegaderm Roll 16004s 10cm x 2m that I change carefully (to not peel the adhesive patch) weekly. This Tegaderm is a little tricky to use. Seek advice from the pharmacist.
2- Reaction of the body
One can imagine that there exists in some people biocompatibility problems with accumulation of proteins on the outer membrane of the sensor. I think the first few months of use, I had to be confronted with this problem because the life of the sensor has increased steadily over time. According to an expert opinion, if the sensor works for more than 15 days, protein accumulation does not exist and it can work much longer.
3- Behavior of the enzyme
The enzyme is not consumed by the chemical reaction with glucose. So I think that the lifetime is not determined by the enzyme unless it breaks down having, for example, reached its expiry date.
4- Shocks and constraints on the sensor
This is an important point. In my example, when the sensor was implanted in the abdomen, there were many periods with display of ??? sometimes for more than 2 hours. This could happen at night when sleeping on the belly or in the day with the car’s seatbelt or by bumping the transmitter. The system does not start working properly once the constraints have stopped. It is necessary to wait long enough.
5- Conclusion
I obtained the best results by inserting the sensor vertically inside the inner thigh taking great precautions of asepsis during insertion and taking care to fix the adhesive patch in case of detachment or after 7 days of use and to change the Tegaderm weekly.
In my case, when inserting the sensor into the inner thigh, the results become reliable only after at least 12h.
Some people advise to protect the transmitter during shower. I do not think it serves anything. Pool or sea baths have never prevented proper operation. Avoid too hot water on the transmitter to prevent the formation of moisture from the body.
The sensor must imperatively be changed if the adhesive patch is soiled.
I’m at day 51 with my current sensor without any malfunction.
I will keep you informed
Final result: The sensor stopped working 4 days ago. It lasted 66 days.
When I removed it, there was no inflammation. There was just a little red dot that quickly disappeared.
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