What meter do you have and how accurate is it?

[Wayne36]

I'm using the iCare advanced given to me my diabetic nurse so she can see how i've been doing. I tested my blood twice this morning 8.1 and 7.7 i had a My Life Pura X sitting there doing nothing so thought i'd check with that and it was 6.5 i would like to think the My Life Pura X is the most accurate one lol but suppose i got to go with the iCare advanced

 

[Oldvatr]

I'm using the iCare advanced given to me my diabetic nurse so she can see how i've been doing. I tested my blood twice this morning 8.1 and 7.7 i had a My Life Pura X sitting there doing nothing so thought i'd check with that and it was 6.5 i would like to think the My Life Pura X is the most accurate one lol but suppose i got to go with the iCare advanced

I think this is a very important question that someone will have to resolve some time, but I have been asked not to comment any further on this topic. So I wish you Good Luck in your quest.

 

[Prem51]

No meter is 100% accurate. They all have a plus or minus 20% accuracy, so both your meter readings were within that range.
You can't expect a bit of plastic costing £20-£30 to give you the accuracy a laboratory would. I use my meter to give me a rough idea where I am, but it's the lab HbA1c test which will give the more accurate picture.
You are fortunate to have been given a meter by your DN, do you get test strips on prescription?

 

[ally1]

I use the sd codefree meter and I only use it as a guide for my levels

 

[Lazybones]

Assuming that both meters have the exact same sample of blood, which they won't, as the sample taken will vary instant by instant even on the same finger, and most meters conform to a standard accuracy which lies somewhere between + and - 15%, so it's very unlikely that you will ever see 2 identical readings even if you were to use 2 of the same type of meters, let alone 2 differing manufacturers.
If you're worried over this then it might be worth obtaining a glucose test solution that most meter manufacturer's readily supply and see by just how much your meter lies within this + to - 15 %. range.
In reality it probably won't matter too much as all your really interested in is the relative rise (or fall) from eating or exercising so if you stick with the one meter for all your testing it's the general trend that your really interested in. Our home B/G monitoring can and never will equate to a proper laboratory blood test anyway.

 

[smilesandsmiles]

I'm using the iCare advanced given to me my diabetic nurse so she can see how i've been doing. I tested my blood twice this morning 8.1 and 7.7 i had a My Life Pura X sitting there doing nothing so thought i'd check with that and it was 6.5 i would like to think the My Life Pura X is the most accurate one lol but suppose i got to go with the iCare advanced

Hi. I've just started wearing the freestyle libre. I've checked the results several times aginst my accuchek aviva finger prick test and they are usually pretty much the same. So in my experience they both seem to telling me the same result. Thats not to say they can't be out a little bit as they do only have a certain level of accuracy.

 

[Andy-Sev]

I use a OneTouch Select Plus and twice I have tested with control solution and twice it has read within .1 of the lowest acceptable range. It does make me wonder whether my machine is reading permanently at -15% which is the acceptable lower range of accuracy.

 

[Wayne36]

I'm not worried was just a ca

No meter is 100% accurate. They all have a plus or minus 20% accuracy, so both your meter readings were within that range.
You can't expect a bit of plastic costing £20-£30 to give you the accuracy a laboratory would. I use my meter to give me a rough idea where I am, but it's the lab HbA1c test which will give the more accurate picture.
You are fortunate to have been given a meter by your DN, do you get test strips on prescription?

At

First she said i didn't need to test but next day she phoned to say i need to, she gave me 50 test strips but i think i only need to test until i see her on the 24th so she can monitor my progress, i don't think she believes i'm eating right lol

 

[Mep]

I have a freestyle lite, an accu-check nano, and dario. They all give me different readings. Today I felt like I was about to hypo. I used the dario to check and I was 5.4 and thought ok why do I feel like I'm starting to hypo on 5.4 which I don't normally. So I pulled out my freestyle lite and that said I was 4.6. So I obviously was feeling the drop and just starting to hypo so I made sure I brought my sugar level back up. But then I was thinking I'm not sure which to trust now. The freestyle lite made more sense with how I was feeling and the dario didn't. hmmm.

 

[MarcoRiveira]

When i was diagnosed late last year, i checked which meter had good accuracy, consistency, code free, and required only a tiny amount of blood. I ended up with the Freestyle Freedom Lite. Using the Consumer Reports guide as reference, the freestyle freedom lite seemed to be among their top from 2012 until today. Accuracy is compared to a medical lab glucose analyzer.

Test strips cost a lot, but i'll get the next stocks from a neighboring country where it was cheaper.

http://www.healthcentral.com/diabetes/c/17/156449/glucose-meters/

Another one, interesting and disturbing
https://www.diabetesdaily.com/blog/2013/07/blood-glucose-meter-accuracy-comparison-chart/

 

[Simply]

Assuming that both meters have the exact same sample of blood, which they won't, as the sample taken will vary instant by instant even on the same finger, and most meters conform to a standard accuracy which lies somewhere between + and - 15%, so it's very unlikely that you will ever see 2 identical readings even if you were to use 2 of the same type of meters, let alone 2 differing manufacturers.
If you're worried over this then it might be worth obtaining a glucose test solution that most meter manufacturer's readily supply and see by just how much your meter lies within this + to - 15 %. range.
In reality it probably won't matter too much as all your really interested in is the relative rise (or fall) from eating or exercising so if you stick with the one meter for all your testing it's the general trend that your really interested in. Our home B/G monitoring can and never will equate to a proper laboratory blood test anyway.

If you have three tests at the same time with the same meter and they're all different results, which one should you forward to the diabetic nurse

 

[Jaylee]

I worked out my Acccu-Chek mobile reads about 5% higher than the one they use at the hospital.. (I normally check my blood before seeing the nurse. Then compare to her result.)
Also regarding keeping my BS records on the Diaconnect app, the HaA1c it calculates is the same percentage higher than the result back from the lab from my check up....

 

[Simply]

Thank you x

 

[tim2000s]

Fundamentally, it doesn't matter how accurate the measurement is.

As a T1 you are better managing to a range than a number, so as long as your glucose levels are showing in that range, then there's no need to worry. Given the variance of meters, if your range is 4.2-7 then the "real" range is 3.6-8. Select one you feel comfortable with and work from there.

In terms of forwarding meter readings to DSNs, it's not something I've ever done, but I've always elected to use the reading I like best...

 

[Pinkorchid]

When i was diagnosed late last year, i checked which meter had good accuracy, consistency, code free, and required only a tiny amount of blood. I ended up with the Freestyle Freedom Lite. Using the Consumer Reports guide as reference, the freestyle freedom lite seemed to be among their top from 2012 until today. Accuracy is compared to a medical lab glucose analyzer.

Test strips cost a lot, but i'll get the next stocks from a neighboring country where it was cheaper.

http://www.healthcentral.com/diabetes/c/17/156449/glucose-meters/

Another one, interesting and disturbing
https://www.diabetesdaily.com/blog/2013/07/blood-glucose-meter-accuracy-comparison-chart/

Yes that could be quite a worry as the article says a 15% accuracy difference can be a big deal for those on insulin.I note the Codefree was not on the test list

 

[Finsky]

I've got Accu-chek Mobile and have been now given Gluco RX nexus from GP's surgery..and I've been running both side by side so that I can see what is going on. And for surprise, there can be as much as 2 points difference!! That's ok if the difference is on higher range of numbers, you know you are high and there is not much else you do but take some more insulin. But when it is on lower range, like other day...one saying 4.6 and other 6.6, that is when one is starting to scratch one's head...shall I take insulin or not?
I'm starting feel like using some 'not so lady like language'...roll on next week and my appointment in hospital...OOOh, I have SOOO much to say to them!!!!

 

[MarcoRiveira]

I hardly test myself these days with my Freestyle Freedom Lite, as I take about the same amount of carbs (moderate 100-200g, not low) everyday and it's always been good in past tests.

Felt like testing myself today, 3 hours after lunch. I usually test only on two fingers, and I think that my skin has hardened on these 2 fingertips. Using the lowest setting of 1, I usually get a good sample size of about 0.3 ul (size as shown here -> http://www.adwdiabetes.com/images/AlphaTRAK2-Blood-Sample-Size.gif).

This time, after 3 attempts, I could only get one blood sample like half of the 0.3 ul in the picture link above, after squeezing hard. Used the tester anyway and it came out at 2.9 ! Shocked, I thought this couldn't be right. I put in another strip, tried one more time and I think I hit a soft spot and got a good 0.3 ul sample. Reading came out as expected, 5.2.

The minimum blood sample size for the Freedom Lite is supposed to be 0.3 ul, but I guess it can be fooled to start testing with a tinier sample, and this will come out wrong.

Well, learned that complying with the blood sample size as per instructions of the meter used is important, at least with the Freedom Lite.

 

[tim2000s]

I've got Accu-chek Mobile and have been now given Gluco RX nexus from GP's surgery..and I've been running both side by side so that I can see what is going on. And for surprise, there can be as much as 2 points difference!! That's ok if the difference is on higher range of numbers, you know you are high and there is not much else you do but take some more insulin. But when it is on lower range, like other day...one saying 4.6 and other 6.6, that is when one is starting to scratch one's head...shall I take insulin or not?
I'm starting feel like using some 'not so lady like language'...roll on next week and my appointment in hospital...OOOh, I have SOOO much to say to them!!!!

Given that, you know the answer is 5.something and can dose accordingly.

 

[4ratbags]

I have a Caresens II and it is very accurate. The average on my meter always matches my Hb results so Im very happy with it.

 

[Jason_Li]

I use Dnurse smart glucose meter. It's small, I've used it for half year, I think it's quite precise, it connects with Smartphone app. Where you can record your glucose data, and it also generates data curve automatically. You can easily see if what causes your high glucose, vice versa.. i bought it through www.dnurse.com/en . good luck!