Which Glucometer Do You Use?
Tuesday October 23, 2007
There are a lot of glucometers out there, and they all do the same thing very differently. Testing times, memory capacity, amount of blood needed, and size of the unit itself vary widely.
Some glucometers are very basic and inexpensive, while others have more bells and whistles, and a higher price tag.
Price is a consideration, and so is the comfort level and ease of use. The most important feature a glucometer can have is accuracy.
What brand of glucometer do you use? Take our poll. If you'd like to comment on what you like, or don't like, about the glucometer you use, please click "comment" at the end of this article.
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Comments
Just like buying a laser printer (and cartridges), the cost of the glucometer is irrelevant over the life of the device – what’s important is to get the best deal on the TEST STRIPS. So, the smart shopper will know how much the strips cost and keep that in mind when selecting a meter
I have tried severla times to choose the HDI sidekick in this poll. I notice that when I vote it has not registered!
I am using the Wavesence meter invented by Agamatrix. It is very efficient and easy to use. As well it has useful software that helps analyze blood glucose trends.
Hi Eric,
I checked the poll and it seems to be registering now.
Sorry for the inconvenience,
Deb Manzella RN
Some Metes are more sensitive to heat and cold. Having a child with diabetes this is very important because of all the places we take the meter. Just leaving it in the car for 15min depending on the meter it will not work until it is at room temp. again.
My eye-hand coordination is atrocious and always has been. Using a conventional meter resulted in 4 out 5 test strips landing on the table, counter or worse! My pharmacist turned me onto the Bayer Ascensia which auto-loads strips from a drum inserted inside the meter. Each drum holds 17 strips and they are supplied in boxes of 3 drums = 51 strips so the outlay is not as great for each batch. This meter works well with small quantities of blood. Of course it also works great for folks who are visually impaired as so many seniors are these days and isn’t it seniors who make up a large segment of folks with Type 2? I hope this or another meter using an internal drum remains available.
I would like a feature that lets you set an alarm on the clock. I do not need to always test b/4 meals but I need a feature that lets me know when it has been 2 hours since I started my meal so I will no when to test. Also maybe an alarm that reminds me to take my meds.
My meter is supplied by Tricare and that is the one I use. I am fortunate that my spouse is retired military. I have no problem with the meter furnished to me.
The 2 most current models of the Bayer line R not listed. The “Breez & Contour”. I love my Contour. I take it to the pharmacy & they print out the last 4 months readings for the Dr to see! TINY sample + results N 5 seconds – WOW.
By George
I have been testing 4-6 times a day for years and the the Freestyle meter works the best for me. I work with my hands and now use my forarm instead of my fingers and have not experience many lows.
What is needed for consumers to make an informed glucometer selection is a frequently updated table showing all the currently available glucometers, their features, pros and cons:- minimum blood sample size, accuracy/calibration requirements, physical size and weight, comfort and convenience, ability to save and download data (interface standards), test supplies (strip, disk or drum, comes with lancet, download cable, etc.?), cost of ownership including consumables as well as initial purchase price, manufacturer info (no use purchasing something whose parent company might disappear overnight or doesn’t provide adequate advice and support), list of bugs and flaws, extra capabilities etc.
I should point out that your so called survey is intrisically biased and almost useless. First it should be normalised to the number of each unit in use, and then ask each respondent what features they like and dislike about their unit, maybe even a value judgement on a 1-5 point scale (e.g. 1=bad, 3=average, 5=great). Your present data collection scheme will likely only show the relative prevalence of units of a particular type in current use, and it will favor somewhat older and cheaper models of which many more are out there. Also important technical issues like accuracy will not be detected at all. We are not “Dancing with the Stars” here but selecting a piece of life support equipment, so it is not just a popularity contest. Make an effort to do a poll properly, or don’t bother to do it at all.
I prefer the Lifescan meters because they work at higher temperatures; also, my new one talks to my pump. Unfortunately, my insurance company prefers the Bayer meters, and I can’t usually justify the difference in the copay. I live in South Texas, where it rarely gets below 80 deg in the summer, and we camp (tents, hiking, no coolers) quite a bit; my Bayer meter generally refuses to function. So I generally splurge on a months worth of One Touch strips each year just for outdoor use.
I’ve been using Accu-Chek meters for 12 years and have been completely satisfied with each. These days, I use the Accu-Chek Compact Plus and am very happy with it’s convenience and accuracy.It’s easy to download at my Drs. office, it has a lot of memory, and very little blood is needed per test. The drums of strips are expensive, but are a God send to those of us with restricted sensation in the fingers.