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CGM is the most effective method for monitoring and treating diabetes

novorapidboi26 said:
Completely agree with everything......

Although the delivery of insulin from a pump is much more efficient, thus requiring less insulin, than injecting a single dose into your body in one go......

there's no escaping that.......
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That's an aspect I hadn't thought of. I wonder if that has an effect on weight?
 
DunePlodder said:
That's an aspect I hadn't thought of. I wonder if that has an effect on weight?
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It has an effect on absorption, not sure about weight. I also find delaying/extending bolus can reduce hypos and that definitely affects weight.
 
DunePlodder said:
That's an aspect I hadn't thought of. I wonder if that has an effect on weight?
Click to expand...

I lost a stone effortlessly, so yes it does........

having an inaccurate and unreliable dose swimming about the system is going to result in a surplus of insulin, which in turn help the fat storage process.....

the science behind insulin and the fat storage process is not a strong point of mine but I do acknowledge it......
 

I know that I lost around half a stone when I sorted out my (MDI) basal dosage. As well as using less insulin, if basal dosage is too high, as mine was, you end up correcting it with snacks leading to obvious effects on weight.
 
I have been saying this since I became diabetic! lol

Pumps are fantastic and all, but are useless if you don't actually know what your BG is doing throughout the day.

Having a CGM even with MDI i would think is a far better treatment option then a pump and a normal finger prick system. The reason, as you pointed out is that with a CGM you can follow your levels throughout the day and either eat, or bolus accordingly. On just a pump, it becomes too easy for people to only check before meals and thus missing out on numerous post meal highs for extended periods.

CGM allows for users to see their levels in terms of a graph in almost real time, which is much easier to comprehend then having to visualize it themselves based on numbers, or do the extra work creating their own graphs. As mentioned before, it allows you to see what your body is doing between finger pricks - after meals, in the night, during activities when you normal wouldn't test.
 
It seems every man and his dog has a CGM and pump in America, unlike England. Shame really, I would love one.

Ali
 
Lots more people have pumps in the US but still CGMs are rare there. Maybe not as rare as the UK but I believe that they still have to be self funded like the UK.
 
It is rare to have a CGM. Rather more worrying is the black market that exists for insulin. However bad the NHS may be, it's light years ahead of universal medical provision in the States.
 
It depends on what health insurance they have. From the posts I've read, quite a lot of people do get them funded or part funded, but they have to persuade the insurers that they need it. Medicare, the system for people over 65 who cannot afford health insurance, does not fund CGMs.
 
Yes a group I belong to seems to consist of people mostly on pumps and CGMs. Great control for sure.
 
Yes: I was referring to the high number of Americans who can't afford health insurance.
 
I know that most US HMOs will provide a pump but I would be surprised about CGMs. Of course if you look online you will see lots of Americans on CGMs, but nothing is telling me they are not self funding like here in the UK. And like @KarenG says a lot of American diabetics don't have health insurance and struggle just to afford insulin, let alone a CGM.
 
Coming back to the UK, do we know how the capital costs and operating costs compare between pumps and CGMs? We have a lot of cost information on this forum for the CGMs, but do we know what the pumps cost the NHS to buy and to operate?
 
@Spiker, there is a value stated regularly that a pump costs £7000, but it is unclear whether that is hardware + running costs or just the hardware.
 
As a minor update on this one, whilst I am a sample size of one, the progression of my bg level management has been as follows:

Pre-CGM Hba1C - 7.0%
Hba1C after 1.5 months CGM - 6.1%
Hba1C after 7.5 months CGM - 5.8%

In addition, the standard deviation on my BG results has gone from being roughly 0.56 of my average BG level to 0.35 of it and my low BG level frequency has dramatically reduced. The way I manage my diabetes has also change to become a far more active, dynamic thing than it was with point in time checks. I really feel, after 7.5 months of the Libre, that getting these to all Insulin dependent diabetics would dramatically improve their ability to look after themselves.
 
I don't see how anyone who has "actively" used CGM could argue that it is not effective. This does include understanding it's limitations, & the limitations of blood test meters. In the case of Dexcom/Medtronic you also need to learn how to calibrate properly.

Used well, it is a superb tool. I have learnt so much about "my" diabetes as opposed to some theoretical disease that the medical experts used talk to me about.

I just wish that there was some means of even partial NHS funding, one sensor a month would help (Dexcom in my case), because I'm convinced that I'm saving them money in the long run. Perhaps I've already saved them money?
 
I agree that CGMs are a great idea and should be more widely available, but pumps still have their place. I got my pump because of severe nocturnal hypos and the Dawn Phenomenon. I experimented for months with my long acting insulin timings and dose, and it was just impossible for it to fit my insulin needs during the night. Now my pump's basal rates can fit - very low earlier and higher just before I get up.

I think there's a lot of wastage in the NHS and if only that could be reduced, there'd be more money for CGMs and pumps as appropriate.
 
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@azure I think pump and CGM together give much more flexibility to dynamically manage everything. I'm still not convinced that most severe nocturnal hypos are not a very serious side effect of outdated dosing regimes and certain insulins, but if we all had cgms it would be a lot easier to find out.
 

Totally agree with the use of CGM for T1's. I've always thought it would revolutionise my own personal BG control. Haven't got hold of one yet though
. I so want one, even moreso looking at your stats.
 
It all depends where you live. Certain CCG's fund. Others don't.
 
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