Hello!
I’ve been a Type1 for 35 years and use a Medtronic pump and have been using the Libre sensor for a week now.
It’s a thumbs up from me.
It’s simple and quick to use and although I have still tested my blood a few times to compare its accuracy, it beats pricking my fingers 6 times a day.
The graphs are useful and clear. All the information collected by the sensor is shared with my doctor, no longer need to prepare or print reports for my appointments at the hospital.
It’s not the cure that we are all hoping for but it’s a big step in the right direction.
LibreLink are planning to release software that will allow readings to be sent directly to the pump. I use the Wizard function on my pump and this gives me the ability to try to calculate active insulin and dosages without having to get the calculator out!
What’s good about the sensor is that it has arrows against the readings which indicate when your sugars are falling or rising rapidly or slowly or are stable. Very useful.
I’m currently spending 25% of my time with readings below 70mg - the sensor is another tool I can use to correct this and increase my understanding of what happens when I eat, move, sleep, sneeze and how everything seems to affect my control.
A few years back I used the Medtronic sensor and although it worked with my pump, the alarms drove me mad and as much as I tried to study the graphs, make adjustments, my HbA1c did not improve. Too much information, poorly presented, left me feeling frustrated and no further forward in my control or understanding other than confirming how hard it actually is to manage and how much we need to understand the impact of different foods, activity, insulin behaviour and all the variables in life that affect our control.
All good compared to syringes and little access to any information back in the 80s and forums such as this and the advances made will help us all.