Is anyone else running into this issue…we were just told that our supplier is out of the “old” freestyle test strips and only has the new Freestyle Lites. The lites are not FDA approved for use with the omnipod. Insulet has told us that they are recommending testing with a seperate meter and manually entering levels into the pod. This defeats the purpose of why we originally went with the pod! Are you all using the Lites with the PDM?
These are actually 3 different strips:
-“Old Freestyle”
-“New Freestyle (with zipwik)”
-“Freestyle Lite”
The “New Freestyle” has received FDA approval for the Abbott meters that used the old strips but not the PDM yet.
The “Freestyle Lite” strips strips are incompatible with the Freestyle (classic) meters, according to Abbott.
http://www.abbottdiabetescare.com/freestyle-freedom-lite-system-frequently-asked-questions.html#3
This web site says some people are using the new Freestyle (not Lite ) strips:
http://www.diabetesmine.com/2010/10/new-freestyle-test-strips-ok-for-omnipod.html
And there is a thread on tudiabetes about this:
http://www.tudiabetes.org/group/omnipodusers/forum/topics/insulet-email-regarding-test
Really?! OH NO!! That isn’t good! I just decided on a pump a few days ago and am waiting for my Omnipod to come in… and if I will have to use a separate glucometer instead of the PDM, then that defeats the purpose… Insulet must have a better way to resolve the shortage of strips, if that is going to be the case…
Me too…waiting for it to come… . Insulet is waiting for FDA approval to use the new strips in the PDM.
Mom2E – here’s a thread that I found regarding your question… maybe it will be of some assistance?
I had just emailed the Omnipod Territory Manager where I am from and am hoping she can shed some light into this issue, as like I have stated before, I am just waiting for my pump to come in (I’ll be a new Omnipod user), and I was really hoping to
lighten
my bag from carrying all of my diabetes supplies… and of course, make my life with d a little easier. So I’m crossing my fingers…
Thanks for your info. The frustrating thing is that we just started our daughter on the Omnipod in July 2011 and were never informed of the strip issue. The thread was helpful- thanks!
Thanks for the link! We’ll all keep our fingers crossed for the FDA to get it together!
There was quite a bit of discussion about this a few months back. It seems to be more of a paperwork issue with the FDA than anything. FWIW I’ve been using the new strips with my OmniPod since January with absolutely no issues. I did some comparisons between the old and new strips and found that the new ones tended to read 5-10 points lower than the old style. But that could have just been that particular batch. Remember, a variation of 15-20% is considered “acceptable” by our wonderful FDA. My A1C’s haven’t budged since making the switch. Just make sure you get the new regular Freestyle strips and not the “Lites” as HPNpilot stated. Good luck!
We are using the butterfly ones that do not say lite. They are still the quick wick kind but just don’t say lite. They are great!!
Hey, I have been through the test strips thing. My daugter was on Omnipod up until yesterday.
The old regular freestyle test strips work just fine.
the New freestyle test strips work even better.
Her med. supply company sent made a mistake and sent met the feestyle lite test strips, but they also worked just fine with the PDM. Don’t Panik and you can always call Abbot. They are very helpful.
My Omnipod just arrived last night…when I opened the box, they had a note in it about the new Freestyle strips not being approved yet and included a separate Freestyle meter as a substitute. What a pain…
I used the new strips no problem. But I never even KNEW there was an issue with this!
why not test both the PDM and meter and see if you consistanly come up with accurate results??
Remember the FDA takes a while.
My Doctor explained that the previous person in charge was a bit too quick to approve things and now they have a new person in charge who is a bit more strict. They probably want to be extra careful before approving??? OR is it all poilitical?
Hard to tell.
We never had a problem AT ALL!!
From all that I have read on here and on the web, it seems to be a paperwork issue with the FDA…since Insulet got the meter technology from Abbott, the meter electronics built into the PDM are likely the same as the Abbott meters. Since Abbott didn’t have to replace all their meters in the field for the new strips, there can’t be that much of a difference.
The FDA probably just wants some kind of proof that they are equivalent and work the same in the real world. I suspect the FDA is being extra cautious because of issues with other medical devices they approved, like all the issues with the metal-on-metal joint replacements.
I’ll probably do as you and others have on here…
Looking forward to getting started on the pump now that it has arrived…just have to set up the pump start with my CDE.
Congradulations! I hope it works well for you. Don’t get discouraged if something goes wrong. This is what we are all here for. To encourage one another.
Even though our daughter isn’t on Omnipod anymore, please feel free to ask me any questions. We have 3 years experience with them.
We have dealt with issues from time to time. Especially Pod failures.
I will say that if you have a problem with a pod, call insulet right away and be prepared to go into your diary list.
They may ask you what your glucose readings were etc. They will send you out a new pod if one fails, no matter how many times they fail. That is one good thing I liked about Omnipod.
Well, I had gotten a phone call yesterday, from Insulet letting me know about the status of my Omnipod, and that’s when I questioned her about the shortage of Freestyle Strips… she told me that I can contact Abbott, and proceeded to give me the phone number (after placing me on hold a couple of times, since she wasn’t expecting that I’d find out about this). She did tell me that I should be able to use “the other Freestyle strips” but it has not been approved by the FDA and cannot officially reccommend using the Freestyle Lite Strips (seriously?!)…
I have yet to hear from the Omnipod Territory Manager to respond to my email… = /
Hi RissaMae - you may want to check out this blog post about the different test Abbot test strips: http://www.ardensday.com/main/2011/1/26/my-freestyle-test-strip-test.html. Good luck!
RissMae83,
I have to say, that was one thing I did not like about Omnipod. My doctor says the same thing: They have poor customer service sometimes.
All in all, I am sure you will be happy with Omnipod. The no tubing is a plus.
I hope the best for you.
Thanks Kate!! That blog really helped me… I think the only reason why I’m reacting this way is because I was not told about the test strip changes (if you can call it that) prior to my choosing Omnipod. So I suppose I am questioning their integrity…
Thanks MarysMom – I actually went to my Diabetes Learning Center and asked the nurse if they knew about the test strip shortages for the PDM and they were ALL unaware… now it really makes me wonder…
Well, keep in mind that Abbot and Insulet are 2 separate companies. The test strip issue is really an Abbott issue. Insulet used their technology and then Abbott made all kinds of changes. It’s like getting mad at your Xbox because Netflix isn’t streaming correctly because of an issue at Netflix. 