New app to make smooth bolus corrections

[SandraHorn]

Dear all,

I am dealing with a type 1 diabetes since I am 15 and I have been under bolus/basal treatment for 3 years now.

Fonctionnal insulino therapy was really giving me a hard time (highs or lows after meals) until I stumbled upon BolusControl.

This simple to use Android app let you know whether your bolus was correct; If not, it tells you how to correct it one hour after.

I have been using it for weeks now and it works like a charm. I am still experiencing highs but they only last 1h or so and it is also preventing lows before they occur.

I am new here and happy to share tips

Sandra

 

[NicoleC1971]

Are we talking a bolus calculator?
Bolus calculators can be useful but are still based on human calculations of your correction dose and bolus/carb ratio which can vary. Prior to fsl and going low carb, I used to just use my Roche meter which is in communication with my pump thus the calculator knows how much active insulin I've got on board too.
I had done a Dafne style course 11 years ago and could never understand why everyone was being taught maths to do the calculations when the tech was and is available to make it easier!

 

[SandraHorn]

It is not a bolus calculator, as many already exist, but a "bolus Corrector".
It does not calculate the bolus, it shows if the right amount of bolus has been injected in the first place.
Boluscontrol can work along with a bolus calculator though!

 

[Muneeb]

It is not a bolus calculator, as many already exist, but a "bolus Corrector".
It does not calculate the bolus, it shows if the right amount of bolus has been injected in the first place.
Boluscontrol can work along with a bolus calculator though!

Surely you must put in how many carbs you ate and at that point you can calculate it yourself and monitor? Estimating the carbs is usually the hardest part.

If not how does it know what the right amount is meant to be?

 

[SandraHorn]

No, the only inputs are
- length of meal
- amount of bolus injected
- glycemia before meal
- glycemia 1 hour after the first bolus

I dont know how it works but it works.

 

[LooperCat]

So what is the cost of this app?

 

[Scott-C]

Just out of curiosity, would it be this one?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.nicachu.www.insul_fonc

 

[WuTwo]

I don't understand the difference between that and a good bolus calculator. My current app has my various ratios stored (and I can add in as many as I like), so all I do is input my bg, exercise tken, carbs taken and it tells me how much to inject. I do that, test later to check I got it right. I also input my HbA1C each year, weight when I check - the whole shebang. It'll even keep an eye on injection sites to make sure I'm rotating, if I want it to. (I don't). I've been using this app for a good six or seven years now and it has many thousands of records stored.

What does this new app offer that my current one doesn't? Not being snarky and I do appreciate the recommendation but I think I need a little more info about it.

 

[SandraHorn]

So what is the cost of this app?

Looks like it is totally free.

 

[SandraHorn]

I don't understand the difference between that and a good bolus calculator. My current app has my various ratios stored (and I can add in as many as I like), so all I do is input my bg, exercise tken, carbs taken and it tells me how much to inject. I do that, test later to check I got it right. I also input my HbA1C each year, weight when I check - the whole shebang. It'll even keep an eye on injection sites to make sure I'm rotating, if I want it to. (I don't). I've been using this app for a good six or seven years now and it has many thousands of records stored.

What does this new app offer that my current one doesn't? Not being snarky and I do appreciate the recommendation but I think I need a little more info about it.

Nice that your current app is working for you. My problem is that I am unable to quantify exactly exercices & carbs, therefore the bolus given by apps is never 100% accurate There is indeed a +/-2 units (and sometimes even more) error in the bolus which is causing lows or highs and this is a real burden. Anyone having the same issue ?
With boluscontrol, even if the first bolus was wrong, I am able to correct it very quickly

 

[SandraHorn]

Just out of curiosity, would it be this one?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.nicachu.www.insul_fonc

Yes it is

 

[Muneeb]

No, the only inputs are
- length of meal
- amount of bolus injected
- glycemia before meal
- glycemia 1 hour after the first bolus

I dont know how it works but it works.

Ok still seems strange, as injecting in the leg will have a completely different insulin profile to the abdomen. If that is calculating what the adjustment should be, surely it should ask for carbs eaten or place injected amongst many other things. After 1 hour mark, you may have used 50% of insulin if injecting in abdomen, but only 30% for example in the leg. I might try this as I'm intrigued, but can't see it providing much benefit personally.

 

[Chris Bowsher]

i've got one of those apps. It's called my brain.

 

[Sizewell]

I have just tried this app and found that it did not work very well at all.
Firstly you can only use g/l or mmol/l, whereas I use mg/dl here in France. So I converted all my readings to mmol/l.
Secondly, in the setup where you have to calibrate it, is very confusing, it asks you to put in you current BS reading and then asks what the BS reading is after 1 unit of insulin in 3 hours?? I cannot see how you can accurately give this.
Thirdly, after giving a BS reading prior to a meal, click start button and begin meal and then click end meal button (after meal) during this time there is a counter on how long it takes for the meal. Then give current BS reading, it will then prompt to give number of Bolus units you are going to take and whether it is fast or slow carbs.
I entered 16 units (novorapid) which is approx. the normal amount of units I take for an evening meal, but it came back with invalid number of units?? (actually it says unvalid number of units). Tried this a couple of times with same prompt, so I dropped the number of units to 10, just to see if it would accept that, which it did. Then you have to wait 1 hour, the phone will ring/vibrate and then enter your BS reading, which it then prompted me that there was nothing I needed to do.

Now I am sure that 16 units of novorapid is not excessive, so why says invalid amount. For me this app is totally unreliable and I will uninstall it.