Some Info On The Freestyle Libre If Anyone Knows

Don't get me wrong, UR, I'd love it if it was cheaper for self-funders (and, indeed, ccgs who are funding it through script), but there's the hard reality that companies just wouldn't bother taking all the risks of bringing a product to market if they are not going to get a decent return on them.

 

Damn, this sh*t is pretty expensive huh? £60 a sensor which only last for 2 weeks. So like over £1500 a year on sensors.

 

Oh I havent bought any, I don't use any this stuff. I just saw it was 60 quid on the actual freestyle website.

I'd maybe use it though if it was only 80 quid a month. Can I find it on the superdrug website?

 

It's actually 50 quid on freestyle - 60 quid includes VAT, which you can tick a box to say you don't need to pay it. I'll let others comment on the costs from physical pharmacies - but it won't be websites.

 

I have an Asda 2 minutes from me. Where do you get it from in there exactly? I didn't think they had pharmacies in Asdas?

 

I have another question. I have never used this before but may do so in the future. How does it work exactly? By that I mean, is the sensor providing constant info to the meter and alerts you if you are low or is it simple just the same as measuring yourself only you scan the sensor with the meter as opposed to pricking your finger to get blood? Because tbh, if it's the 2nd, then 100 quid a month just to avoid pricking your finger doesnt seem worth it haha

 

You have to scan get the data with Libre. However, you can buy a transmitter to sit on top of it which will Bluetooth the data to your phone every five minutes, and you can set alerts etc on that.

 

It's not just the finger pricking advantage. It's the knowing whether you are going to go low or high, which are the main advantages. Plus instantly getting a reading, being able to do it in the night, or discreetly when out. Lots of people find the daily patterns useful, although I don't use that functionality.

 

Also, even if you don't scan for a while it automatically gives you up to the last 8 hours when you do finally scan, so it's awesome for finding out what your blood sugar is actually doing overnight. If it still worked for me I would willingly self fund, but unfortunately it doesn't at all.

 

I just looked at the website. It says it isn't measuring blood but fluid near the cells, and that it can be 5 minutes behind. 5 minutes behind isn't great for a hypo is it, so in that case if you were starting to feel low would blood measuring still be best?

 

I thought it was actually 15 mins behind (though I could be wrong) and yes they do say if you're going hypo (or your blood sugar level is changing rapidly) then yes you need to actually do a blood test to find out what you're at.
I find it can be out by quite a bit either when it's showing low or high.

 

There are many threads about the Libre on this site - it's worth having a look around.
But regarding your comments on hypos, there are two ways to look at it
- as has been previously mentioned, the Libre is not a replacement to finger pricking. The value is in the trends - the Libre can tell you if you BG is rising or falling and the history can be used to help adjust your insulin doses.
- if you have a hypo, it is too late. In association with other tech, the Libre can warn you when a hypo is predicted rather than when your BG has already dropped below 4.0. It can warn you, for example that your BG is less than 4.5 and you can then chec whether it is still falling sharply and react before you hypo.

 

I was walking in the highlands with a friend who is also T1. We'd got to an appropriate flat spot for a bit of a breather, and I thought "time to test sugar" - and she thought the same.

I reached into my pocket, pulled out the reader, pressed a button, waved it against my arm, read the number, pressed the button again to turn it off and put it back in my pocket. Entire process less than 10 seconds I think.

She took her rucksack off, unpacked the fingerprint reader, took gloves off, assembled the strip into the reader, pricked, picked the blood up onto the strip, waited for the reading, packed everything away again, gloves back on, rucksack back on. That's quite a lot of faff.

It may not seem like it's worth the difference, but it definitely is - and that's just for the instant reading. I could also see whether I was going up or down and how fast, which the finger prick doesn't give you unless you do another a few minutes later.

In another thread you've talked about going hypo from exercise. If you're on an exercise bike, you can reach over to the reader, scan, check, done, all without stopping pedalling. (then munch some fast acting sugar if it's dropping). I can test while running. (I think I have managed to test while riding on the road, though I'd not necessarily recommend it and I do normally stop for that

It's a fairly massive step change in usefulness compared to fingerpricks. The add-ons that helensaramay mentions (eg miaomiao) take it to another level again, with the real time alerting (though if you read the warnings, you mustn't use them for that - the joys of open source software which hasn't gone through any medical approvals process).