Archive for June 19th, 2008

Thursday, June 19th, 2008

CGM: Day Zero

So after an unexpectedly short battle with Anthem Blue Cross, my continuous glucose monitor arrived yesterday. It’s a Minimed Paradigm system, which integrates with my Paradigm 722 insulin pump.

I usually don’t blog about my diabetes, but felt like I should make an exception this time as CGM is a pretty new technology, just starting to gain traction among the diabetic community. Insurers are generally less-than-thrilled about paying for the $1000 devices and $35 sensors, which have to be replaced every three days.

In any case, “thanks” to my history of low blood sugar reactions, Anthem ponied up 70% of the cost and I was in business.

I was surprisingly pleased when the transmitter came pre-charged (it claims to only need 20 minutes of charging every three days). It’s a little bit bigger than the size of a quarter, maybe a quarter-inch think and waterproof.

The sensor itself looks similar to an infusion set, but with a thicker needle and its own inserter device. The needle pulls out, leaving a thin wire underneath the skin. Unfortunately, it goes in at an angle, something I’ve never much liked, preferring 90 degree insertion angles.

The transmitter clips on to the sensor fairly securely, but does not adhere to the skin at all, leaving this thousand-dollar device looking like it could get knocked off by a rogue waistband at any time. Medtronic includes a series of transparent dressings to cover the entire unit, however, which helps a little bit.

The biggest surprise of the day was that the sensor takes three hours to initialize and calibrate, at which time you check your blood sugar and then (finally) begin to receive readings. The readings, coming from interstitial fluid, lag behind your actual blood glucose readings by at least 20 minutes, which can also be frustrating.

So much for not having to check my blood as much; instead, I feel like I’m checking it even more often.

Anyway, with high and low glucose alarms set, I’m off to bed for the first night with CGM. More to come.

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