OneTouch Verio Flex inaccurate readings

Diabetes Technology
1

Hi all,

I’m new here, and I was hoping I could get some help.

I was diagnosed with type II in mid-June of 2019. I had to replace my first OneTouch Verio Flex in November of that year because the readings were off. I thought it was damaged from travel. Recently, the readings started seeming wrong again with the new one. I tested the strips with the control fluid and the reading was within range. I called the company and they issued me a voucher for a new one. Now the newest one is still giving me inaccurate readings. It’s giving me readings in the high 90s and low 100s when it should be at least in the 130s. If my readings were really that low, my fasting sugars wouldn’t have been 132 at my last test (I know…I’m working on it). I’m kind of at a loss and would appreciate advice.

I’m not sure if I can get another brand/model because I think this is the only one my insurance (Kaiser Permanente) covers.

2

As far as I know there isn’t anything you can do to make a meter more accurate and One Touch products are notorious for their inaccurate readings. You may be able to get your Dr. to do an authorization for a different brand of meter and strips based on the inaccuracy you are experiencing. Try Contour Next by Bayer or Accu-check by Roche.

You could also pay out of pocket for a more accurate meter. There are several options to do this from Amazon to subscription services.

3

I have Kaiser. I use and older model one touch that seems to be just fine. However they ask me all the time if I want to switch to another brand. To let them know. I hardly do finger sticks anymore w my dexcom just every other day.
So I haven’t bothered.
Best way to test it is to take your meter with you to the lab the next draw you have. Test it just before they draw you. Then when you get the lab results you will see a true comparison.
The test solutions are a waste of time cause the range is so wide it’s pointless.
However I work in the laboratory world. I make my own control solution. I make it at 100 mg /dl.
I know it’s exact and my meter I pretty close. It runs low. Like 95-99 or so.
But again I hardly bother with it now. But you can make it if you have a accurate balance w table sugar.so if you have a volumetric flask and a balance you can make it.

4

Why couldn’t your blood sugar be 132 in the morning? Many can be elevated in the morning as you put out glucose to start the day. Nancy50

5

Personally, I detest One touch meters. I think they’re random number generators. I’ve got three various types of Vario, and each new one they send me is worse than the last.

It’s sad, because they were the industry leader/innovator when I was first diagnosed. They’re one of the most expensive strips for the least accurate results I think they’re another one that’s just thriving on an earlier earned reputation.

6

The FDA allows meters to have 20% error. Yours doesn’t seem super off to me.
OneTouch has never been at the top of the list for accuracy, but it is for price.
If you want a more accurate brand, you could scan this old document for the ones that have traditionally hit the mark.

https://www.diabetestechnology.org/surveillance.shtml

https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/41/8/1681.figures-only

7

I’m not personally a kaiser member but a friend is, and he was prescribed a Freestyle Lite and gets 300 strips\month. It seems. Kaiser has a definite Lifespan preference (probably because of Rx rebates), but they do cover other meters if you push for it.

8

I’ve also found the readings from my OneTouch Verio Flex to be a source of frustration.

The general 20% allowance by FDA is bad enough (a reading of say 120 could mean you are anywhere from 96 to 144)! However, even within the meters themselves there seems to be a discrepancy:

Earlier this year, I did a blood test, but I did it as a control test. It was my first test of the morning and I if my BSL was high I didn’t want it to record since my provider can see my results (but not the results when using the control setting, since it’s typically reserved for the testing solution).

I was happy when I saw it was in the “Green” so I immediately took another test the correct way (using a new pin prick), but this time the result was ±30 points higher. I’m in the “Red”!

I understand that you can get two different readings (it was two separate pin-pricks about 30 seconds apart) but this seemed like a big difference.

I’ve repeated this test several times now over a few months (this time using the same pinprick and drop of blood, in the hope of making it more accurate) and the results when using the meter set to ‘Control’ is ALWAYS different by somewhere between ±15-±30 points.

Once again, the difference is annoying but I can understand it’s possible. However, EVERY TIME when the control setting is selected, it is ALWAYS lower, if it were a simple case of two samples being slightly off, then there should be times when the “Control” test on my blood is higher, but that has never happened, It’s as though the meter is designed to show a lower number when using the Control setting.

I’ve done this test also using the test solution bottle and again it is off by ±15-30 points each time and when the control test is selected, the number is ALWAYS lower.

I also found my old OneTouch Verio Flex (that I had previously misplaced), and there are the same discrepancies with that one: the numbers are ALWAYS lower when selecting ‘Control’ by almost the same margin!

To add more complication when I test my sugar level (again same pin-prick) with both meters the older one shows a lower reading than the newer one (somewhere between ±12-±26 points) EVERY time!

So which meter should I trust to be accurate and which to be wrong!? They both pass the control solution test! Is my sugar low when my old meter shows that I am 65 (using control seting) or am I fine because the newer meter (that is the same model) says that I am 110 (without control)!?

I did another test today (22-DEC-2021) using my new meter only:

  • Using control solution:
    With Control set, it was 121. Using the exact same drop on a new strip AND not selecting a Control and it was 137! A 16% difference.
  • Using the same drop of my blood:
    With Control set, it was 63, but without Control set it was 75! A 12% difference.

Like I said, frustrating.

9

If you do the research. I think you will find that the numbers you are getting from Verio Flex, they would consider totally normal and within their tolerances. You are within the ranges I always got with various One Touch meters before switching to Contour Next One.

You may want to consider a Contour Next One meter if you are looking for tighter results.

https://www.amazon.com/Contour-Smart-Meter-Monitoring-System/dp/B06W53ZLTK/ref=sr_1_8?crid=1I9S48RYM75VN&dchild=1&keywords=contour+next+one+meter&qid=1608726030&sprefix=contour+next+one+%2Caps%2C215&sr=8-8