Sp00kie13

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Knikki

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This has been discussed in another thread somewhere.

Personally I don't think it is great and you really should always check with a finger prick first.
 

Juicyj

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I wouldn't trust a libre sensor reading for driving a car, my licence is too precious, i'd always do a meter test first.
 

porl69

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With the inaccuracies with the Libre this is not a good idea at all
 

evilclive

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Disagree with the negatives here, for me at least. Libre does a good job of telling me if I'm safe to drive - it under-reads if anything and as per the DVLA guidance there's a fingerprick backup if there's any doubt. The ease of testing means it's way more likely to happen at a rather higher frequency than every two hours, and that combined with the obvious trend lines mean it's going to be a lot quicker to spot problems sooner. Compare eg "hmm, an hour in and I feel a little different. Hypo, hyper, too much fizz, what? Don't know, but I can test. Ok, I'll wait for a junction or service station, pull in, stop, get the kit out, test, ok, it was fine, drive off again. Or wave the reader, see it's fine and trending along, carry on." 10 minutes difference to the journey - I'm not likely to do the stop unless it's feeling likely to be a problem, but the quick wave means I'll know instantly.

Maybe the fingerprick is a useful addition in those marginal times (4-5ish), but for me they're quite rare anyway, it's generally rather more obvious.
 

KK123

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Disagree with the negatives here, for me at least. Libre does a good job of telling me if I'm safe to drive - it under-reads if anything and as per the DVLA guidance there's a fingerprick backup if there's any doubt. The ease of testing means it's way more likely to happen at a rather higher frequency than every two hours, and that combined with the obvious trend lines mean it's going to be a lot quicker to spot problems sooner. Compare eg "hmm, an hour in and I feel a little different. Hypo, hyper, too much fizz, what? Don't know, but I can test. Ok, I'll wait for a junction or service station, pull in, stop, get the kit out, test, ok, it was fine, drive off again. Or wave the reader, see it's fine and trending along, carry on." 10 minutes difference to the journey - I'm not likely to do the stop unless it's feeling likely to be a problem, but the quick wave means I'll know instantly.

Maybe the fingerprick is a useful addition in those marginal times (4-5ish), but for me they're quite rare anyway, it's generally rather more obvious.

It still says you have to pull over to check the device so what's the difference really?
 

evilclive

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It still says you have to pull over to check the device so what's the difference really?

I've generally got a passenger...

Of course I'd never consider reaching for the device sitting next to the gearstick (no need to take eyes off road), press the button and wave against my arm (no need to take eyes off road), look down briefly as if to check speed/petrol/radio station and accidentally see a number in very big letters, and press the button enough to turn it off and put it back next to the gearstick. That would be very bad and wrong, and shouldn't be done by anybody.
 
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I sometimes use a Libre to test before driving but don't use the Libre alone.
As others have said, a Libre is not always accurate.
But finger pricks are not perfect either - they only tell you what your BG is now and cannot predict what it will be,

Therefore, I like to finger prick to find out an accurate enough reading for now and use the LIbre to tell me what the trend is.
For example, if my finger prick is 4.2 and Libre tells me my BG is rising, I am happy to drive whereas, if my finger prick is 5.0 and Libre tells me my BG is falling fast, I will eat something before driving.
 

Copernicus

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168
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Playing devils advocate here but, does everyone on this forum really finger prick every time before driving ? Doubt it and I doubt anyone will admit not to.
 
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Knikki

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@Copernicus No I don't finger prick every time I drive.

@evilclive So every sensor you have had has worked perfectly, and only every read 1 point behind the blood tests?

Oh and I am not being negative just cautious seeing as the current sensor I have on was reading 4 points out from the bloods the other day but now has settled down to 1.5 points out. Technology is good but has its flaws.
 

palm_tree

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Messages
20
Type of diabetes
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I have never had a flash glucose reading more than 0.8 different to the blood glucose reading. I think the idea of checking using the libre is a great idea. Especially as my partner in the passenger seat can wave the reader next to my arm and let me know whether I need to pull over and eat. Helpful hint - always put the sensor on your left arm!
 
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Playing devils advocate here but, does everyone on this forum really finger prick every time before driving ? Doubt it and I doubt anyone will admit not to.
Not every time I drive but usually I test within 2 hours of driving.
However I usually drive once or twice a week. Perhaps the answer would be different if I commuted to work every day. Or perhaps it would be easy to get into the habit.
 

Brunneria

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My current Libre is reading between 1 and 2 mmol/l lower than actual blood glucose - which makes it useless to gauge bg, but still effective for gauging trends.

If I were an insulin user I would not dream of risking my life and my license on it, even as an indication of whether I should then do a finger stab.

As for testing when driving, ditto wot @evilclive said. Thank heavens for passengers, eh?
 

evilclive

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464
Type of diabetes
Type 1
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@evilclive So every sensor you have had has worked perfectly, and only every read 1 point behind the blood tests?

Oh and I am not being negative just cautious seeing as the current sensor I have on was reading 4 points out from the bloods the other day but now has settled down to 1.5 points out. Technology is good but has its flaws.

Yes, libres can be ****. However generally speaking I find when that is happening, it's reading low rather than high, and in the context of driving I'm not going to worry about that. Towards the end of a sensors life that seems to happen more. I'll also get an idea of how a given sensor is behaving when calibrating xdrip (which I don't use for driving).

Right now, I'm on 4.8, tending lower, and I can feel it, so will be off for a biscuit, and would be fingerpricking if I wanted to drive. But if I feel fine and the libre shows sensible numbers based on my experience (a bit over three years now I think) I'll be happy to not have to bother with the additional stabbing :)
 
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ringi

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Remember there is a legal requirement to park and turn off the engine before using any handheld device including the Libre reader. Hence even using the Libre at a red traffic light can result in points.
 

db89

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Playing devils advocate here but, does everyone on this forum really finger prick every time before driving ? Doubt it and I doubt anyone will admit not to.

Yes, or within the last two hours for shorter journeys only.

I agree with some of the above posts - I will continue to use a finger prick for driving but I already use Libre/Blucon/xDrip to supplement this with calibrated readings during journeys. If there's a change in direction I can pull off and sort whatever the issue is out instead of seeing the 5 minute window snapshot every 2 hours. As my phone is dash mounted the number is updated every 5 minutes automatically on the display without scanning if I want to glance at it (and that doesn't involve pressing any buttons to see it).
 
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evilclive

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464
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Remember there is a legal requirement to park and turn off the engine before using any handheld device including the Libre reader. Hence even using the Libre at a red traffic light can result in points.

Any handheld communications device, not any handheld device. Which should exclude the libre reader. (though it's possible some prosecutor might get uppity about the NFC communications, I'd expect that to not last past appeal).

Of course they can still get you for not being in adequate control, same as eating while driving, or applying lipstick, adjusting a tie, etc. But not under the mobile phone legislation.
 
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