lately I have become skeptical of my BG reading from my meter (OneTouch VerioIQ). It consistently reads different from my Dexcom G6. I tested back to back, clean hands, on two different VerioIQ’s that I have. One reading was 8.5, and the other 7.6…that is a pretty large difference. Dexcom was reading 7.2.
Possible that this meter has “gone bad”? I’ve been diabetic over 10 years but never paid much attention to this. I don’t have any of that testing solution (never got any with any of my meters).
How rare is it for these meters to be off/go bad? And have any of you ever had it happen before?
These meter to meter comparisons will sorely test your patience. The only comparison that I place any value in is to do three consecutive fingersticks directly after a lab blood draw that tests for plasma glucose. I average those three figerstick readings and compare it to the lab number. If it’s not reasonably close or within 0.3-0.5 mmol/L (5-10 mg/dL), I would be looking for another meter.
Here’s a resource that could help but it is now over three years old. I trust the Diabetes Technology Society.
No, it is not rare for glucose meters to be off or bad. I think that case is more the rule than the exception. If you use insulin to treat your diabetes, a reasonably accurate and precise meter is essential for safety. (Do some research so you understand the difference between precision and accuracy.)
This issue has been raised countless times on this forum. Do a TuD search using a term like, “meter accuracy.” You’ll find plenty of helpful info there.
Thanks…pretty clear that Bayer ContourNext is the winner…Also read good things about the Freestyle Lite which I used for about 5 years before switching to the OneTouch…might be time to switch.
My DME supplier keeps sending me a new Verio IQ meter every year, even though I’ve never asked for them. I DETEST the Verio IQ with a passion. It’s a complete and utter random number generator. You can test 5 times in a row with the same meter and get 5 wildly different results, well outside a 40% variance that would make sense for a meter that’s within FDA guidelines. (Meters are allowed to vary 20% in either direction from a laboratory value, so the farthest allowable extremes shouldn’t be more than 40% of the central value apart from one another)
It’s a shame, really, because LifeScan started out as the Cadillac of home testing. But it’s like they haven’t bothered to keep up with the times. They’re still sending out meters that are up to 1980’s standards, in a more modern design.
That said, there do seem to be a few more accurate meters in the lot. I’ve seen others rave about them and I’ve also seen them fare shockingly well in the the various meter comparison tests that have been made. (Maybe the manufacturers donated from primo lots?) I think there’s just a wide margin that rolls off the factory line. Some are terrible, and some are pretty good, and probably every range there in-between. Maybe the ones Byram healthcare chucks out for free just scored low in the quality testing phase.
I also suspect that while all meters are allowed a wide range of error, that people tend to prefer the ones that are more likely to yield numbers in the range they like. Such as, meters that have a tendency to read lower than true. So that might influence public opinion.
Good to know. I ordered a Contour Next One. Picking it up soon. Hopefully it’s better than what I’ve had. Maybe my Dexcom has been more accurate than I thought all this time…
The man with only one clock always knows what time it is.
The man with two clocks is never quite certain.
If you get the idea that fingerstick bg tests are only good to 10-15% and can be even further off high if there’s anything sticky the finger, or further off low because you squeezed so hard that the drop has a lot of interstitial fluid in it, then you are starting to appreciate reading-to-reading variability.
