Hi, I live in Italy and after two years with Medtronic 640g & nightscout my kid is changing technology. Next week we are transitioning to dexcom g6 and tandem IQ. Sounds great except for the fact we use android phones, all incompatible with dexcom. So, I found out I can use third-party app xdrip+ . Problem, I am new to all these three: dexcom, tandem and xdrip+. So I need your collective knowledge. Which of the many releases and pre-releases of xdrip+ should I install? Intuitively, I would go for the latest version (âpre-release 20210505â) but the instructions I am following from androidaps.readthedocs⌠do not match the settings I find when installing this version of the app. Instead, they do make sense with the previous âlatest release 20210308â. So, is it the same whether I go for one or the other version of xdrip+?
Then, provided whatever version I install works well, I will make my daughterâs telephone the master while I will be the follower. My question is, what parameters should I set in my phone to be able to turn off her alarms while she is at school? Thanks!
Welcome to FUD @Maricarmen! Great first question. I am not an xdrip expert, so I will let those with more knowledge weigh in on it. As far as the Dexcom Tandem combination, it works really really well for my son. So glad you are able to change technology. This combo has allowed my son to maintain a sub-7 A1c while living an almost normal life with very little interaction with his diabetes.
Thanks Chris. Your sonâs experience with dexcom + tandem is encouraging. I am looking forward for a night of good sleep!
In US, Tandem has a mobile app that shows both pump and cgm data, called T:Connect. There is also website to log into and see more history and report data. Can you check if that is available in Italy?
I have both xDrip and Tandem app on my Android phone.
In xDrip, check settings, alarms and alerts.
There will also be alerts direct from Tandem pump, and can be set to vibrate or off.
Thanks for your reply, MM2. May I ask you, which version of xdrip+ do you use?
Regarding t-connect, to my best knowledge this app only allows the use of the phone (my daughterâs phone) as secondary display of data for her pump. T-connect enables no distant real-time monitoring for parents. This plus the fact I will not be using the dexcom app are the reasons why I must become familiar with xdrip+ asap. Next week we have the appointment to get and start using the combination of dexcom and tandem. By the way, for the storage and analysis of data I plan to use tidepool. Is anyone here using it?
My xDrip version is 2021.03.08.
When the data goes to T:Connect app, it will also upload to web T:Connect. As long as you know userid and password, you can access from browser on PC or phone. Not optimal on small phone screen size, but will display.
You can set up xDrip to have follower, but I donât use it. I did search and found this video.
I donât use tidepool, but others here do.
(I also use a Fitbit Ionic watch, and xDrip provides data to Fitbit, which is easy to check without looking at phone or taking pump out of pocket.
Unless there is a specific setting that is required and has since been removed, just go with the latest/greatest version.
There are two ways for updates though, stable and nightly.
I have done both versions over the years.
The only time I had to use a specific version was when I was running it with a specific smart watch (Sony SW3), I had to stay with an older version for it to work.
Btw, I have tried a LOT of different combos over the years with my setups.
My current is a Tandem X2 with Dexcom G6 (the X2 uses the pump slot.) and I have a BlueJay watch as my collector in the phone slot. My watch actually connects to my phone for my phone to display data, etc.
I do not do anything with followers though, so I have no advice on that end.
Many thanks MM2 and Hammer for all your info. I will go for the latest release of xdrip+ (20210308).
I need to double check T:connect app as I had understood from other users that uploading is a bit slow and does not guarantee real time updates in T:connect web, but if it does, I am in. Just a naive question, T:connect connects with the pump and not with the dexcom transmitter, right? Also, thanks for the JamOrHamâs video. Itâs useful and very clear. As for the watch, well I have only a few days, but in other thread I had read about finow q1 pro watch that is actually a mini-phone. So I may end up buying it just to increase chances that my daughter keeps it with her and that she checks her glucose levels easily. Finally, if there is a tidepool user around, could you please guide me on how to connect it to xdrip+? Thanks.
How old is your daughter, and how long with T1D ? How capable is she of doing most pump/cgm decisions on her own, vs frequently needing your help ?
She is 12 now and was diagnosed two years ago. I would say yes, she has become fairly capable of managing some aspects of her diabetes but faces considerable challenges: she is also amazingly forgetful (e.g. leaves around her phone), has a very unstable case of diabetes, and is 100% insensitive to hypos. We started with a multiple daily injection therapy (MDI) and countless finger pricks. Then we moved to libre 1 which greatly reduced the number of daily finger sticks but left us with MDI. Given severe lows at night we were given the minimed 640g and for a year and half used enlite sensors. With no communication between the sensor and pump, the only real pro for us was the pumpâs temporary basal program that we could set in case of high & lows. This tech required a great input from me but, all in all, was relatively acceptable to manage my daughterâs brittle diabetes until the latest quarter of the year when our sensors simply stopped working . We tried all what Medtronic suggested us to do, but the management of my daughterâs diabetes was getting really bad without a realiable cgm. So, exhausted of constantly calculating and changing the basal program, frequently replacing new sensors and receiving frequent calls from school, I started searching for a way to create a loop and to my surprise I found a lot of progress in the DIY field and a bit less in the commercial sector. We talked with our endocrinologist and decided to give a try to the combo dexcom g6 + tandem control iq (not common in Italy) to see if we can regain control over my daughterâs aggressive glucose swings. This, even when Tandem still has the tube that my daughter so much hates particularly when exercising. And here I am⌠collecting info, particularly about xdrip+ which seems such an unknown territory to me.
Couple of thoughts. My son was diagnosed at 12 and it sounds like was in a similar situation as your daughter. First, I think the Tandem will work really well at reducing your workload, and while it wonât get your daughterâs A1c into the 5âs we are consistently getting into the 6âs without much work from my son.
On the wild swings, we found that my son is Very carb sensitive as compared to his peers. When he is low and tried to take 15g of carbs he would routinely shoot in the 300âs. It is so bad, that when he eats more than 5g of carbs to treat a low, he is also dosing more insulin to blunt the rise. This as compared to his diabetic friends who can eat 15g of carbs and go from 50 - 90. Once my son reduced his low treatments to 5g to start, and limited his carbs to 100-120g per day, his life has been amazingly simplified.
On the exercising, if your daughter is playing sport, or doing prolonged exercise we have had a lot of luck using Lantus for 50% of his basal needs, and the pump for the other half. Then when he is about to start exercising, he removes his pump and has the correct amount of basal for the exercise or sport. That way you donât have to be connected all the time. Your daughter can also manage it by plugging in periodically if you donât want to use the injected basal insulin approach. You donât have to be connected 24/7.
Hope you are successful setting up the Xdrip program, it takes patience at times, but works really well.
I started with the earlier Medtronic sensor, called Sof-sensor. But soon switched to Dexcom Seven (1990s) and then later G4 and G6. I started on Medtronic 507 pump, up to 523. Last year switched to Tandem pump, with C-IQ, and the G6 integration is great!! But did take awhile for me to get used to it and optimize settings (and my behaviour).
Also called âthe harpoonâ because of that awe-inspiring blue inserterâŚ
I almost included that in my post, but didnât think many others here knew that.
I was most upset at fact that medical folks were also clueless to dexcom alternatives, and medtronics reps were way more plentiful than dexcom in early days. So I blindly continued to suffer with harpoon until a co-workerâs son was diagnosed and she asked if I used dexcom !!
Your positive experience with tandem c-iq is very encouraging. Thanks Cris and MM2 for sharing it. We really hope it will work for us too. And Chris, yes, it seems we do have a thing in common: a case of high sensitivity to carbs at home. Your strategy of 50% lantus to be pump-free occasionally sounds fantastic! It hadnât cross my mind but sounds reasonable enough as to discuss it with our doctor.