One of these things is not like the other - A discussion of CGM and Meter accuracy

:joy:

Maybe we can quantify this? (I realize this probably won’t work for the pre-teens we have). What height and weight (and therefore BMI) plus maybe waist measurement are the people here that are getting poor CGM results? How much exercise are they getting - in calories burnt or hours exercising per week? Please give reasonable average results - not the weight you WANT to be or the amount of exercise you get only when preparing for a big race.

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My CGM numbers are more likely to lag lately and so I am testing more. I do not consider myself an athlete but I have noticed that with regular yoga practice I have trimmed up and have more strength in core and upper body. I even have upper arm muscle definition so need help pinching up a fatter spot for my sensor. Go figure!

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Sorry - was not actually mocking.
I forgot myself for a moment there.

Good question.

We have very good results with Dexcom and have since we initially started on the Dexcom Seven Plus, then the G4, the G5 and now the G6. That does not mean we do not get the occasional sensor that makes no sense and ends up getting pulled or occasional bad numbers nor that we do not validate the data we see from time to time when we think it appropriate. That only seems reasonable.

But our weight/height is right in the middle of the charts for adolescents of the given age.

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I’m on the super lean side of the BMI chart. I have issues with Dexcom accuracy if there is any significant movement in my numbers. Or when there is not significant movement in my numbers, too, sometimes.

Like @ClaudnDaye has said, I do not use my G5 for treatment decisions anymore. It would be like expecting to be able to carve the David with a butter knife. It’s just not the right tool for that application for me anymore…but it doesn’t mean that it’s useless. I just have to keep in mind what it is able to do for me.

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can meerkats even take pictures??

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Apparently they can, or they know someone who will for them…

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Is that what you call it?!? :open_mouth::rofl:

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That’s weird, meerkat sounds Dutch, but we don’t call this animal meerkat.

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Eh, I don’t know. I think this is kind of rude too. I’m glad you have great control and test 20 times a day, but I have great control and test way less.

I trust my cgm a lot, but my A1c and eAG are great. My eAG over the last week would put me at a 5.3%.

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My Opinions For What They Are Worth:

I did think that @Eric’s response was proportional. I don’t really mind if anyone disagrees with me on that.

If anyone on FUD thinks there is a “gotcha” in someone’s post that they are using to make a larger point, there is a way to ask that question. Kindly. Accusing of misrepresentation (AKA lying) isn’t the way to do it. Especially if it is all handled publicly in front of everyone.

Everyone has to decide for themselves what works for them, what their goal is, what they’re willing to try, what they think is within their comfort zone and skill level.

Once we get to the point that open and fair discussion of different individual experiences is drowned out by a particular viewpoint or experience, the forum is going to lose what makes it worthwhile in the first place. Everyone’s experience with diabetes is unique. If we can’t talk about that fairly, what’s the point of FUD?

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I’m with you (G6 since June last year), except for the first day. Wacky readings, sometimes so bad I’ve needed to restart the sensor, but great after that. Each sensor has to prove itself to me, and only then will I trust it enough to treat without fingersticks. I try to still calibrate 1-2 times per day to be sure but this gives me the freedom to not bother with test strips when I’m eating out or having lunch in the office.

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I don’t think it’s rude, but I do think there’s also a little bit of a confounder in the dataset. A person who tests 20 times a day is someone who is willing to interrupt their life to do that extra step. We are a lot less meticulous in how we deal wth Samson’s blood sugar because it’s not our body and we have to balance his needs to be a kid with our responsibility as parents to keep him as healthy and safe as possible (and his brothers as healthy and safe as possible too). So I don’t doubt that if I were to do finger sticks 20 times a day I could probably get Samson’s A1C down BUT I’d also then be a person who is making lots of other decisions differently – I’d probably wait for him to come into range to eat 100 percent of the time, limit his intake to foods we think are easier to handle, wouldn’t choose to sleep through “high” alarms at 150 or 160 at night, and would set alarms on my phone so that I never, ever miss that second follow-up bolus for a long-digesting meal, for instance. So I think to some extent the sample is skewed by the fact that people who are choosing such a rigorous level of diabetes management have the mindset and other types of behavior necessary to maintain tight control.

For what it’s worth, in my CGM in the Cloud and Looped groups on Facebook, I see tons of people posting flatlines with minimal effort using DIY closed-loop algorithms. I suspect for every one person with a 5.0 A1C there’s another 10 in there with a 6.0 to 7.0, but it’s definitely possible to achieve very low A1Cs with a totally different approach than finger-pricks all the time.

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It has been done!The%20David%20on%20Dairy%20_%20Butter%20Sculptures%20Photo%20Gallery

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Yes indeed it was a bit rude of me. But after you get poked in the eye, you sometimes respond in a less-than-pleasant manner. It’s not something I would have thrown out there without the provocation.

I was accused of being deceptive. I am not that. I have always spoken here with complete honesty. Stating everything to the best of my knowledge.

I try very hard to help people on their needs. I don’t spout simple answers, I always try to engage with them and ask pertinent questions so I can give them the best answer possible.

So my response came from less-than-ideal feelings at the time.

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My Dexcom is showing a straight drop down thru 91 and I appear to be a gentle slope thru 141. It’s drunk again.

ETA: now it’s jumped up 15 points, then totally lost its arrow. It has no clue what’s happening.

Apology and explanation, to Eric and all:

The apology.

Eric and all, it’s abundantly clear that I wrote a very bad post, and I apologize without reservation. I assert that Eric has a stellar reputation here, and he has vast knowledge and exceptional generosity in sharing it selflessly to help us. I know of no instance in which Eric has shown malice or deception.

The explanation.

This thread is called “One of these things is not like the other” and opens with a photo of 3 sets of sunglasses and one hat. For me that set a playful tone. It was followed by a photo of a CGM and two meters, with the CGM looking completely different. I shook my head in amusement because we can see the darndest things on CGM graphs depending on when we look. I supposed that Eric had measured after an IV correction for a persistent rise, and was showing us an outrageous (“outrageous” as in funny, not malicious) tableau. And I did shake my head in amusement, as I remembered a photo he posted quite a while ago that showed a CGM with a down arrow together with a meter with an up arrow, and the numbers were quite different. I commented in that thread and he indicated that yes, probably this photo was at a BG turning point. So I thought the photo here was just another example and said nothing. Initially. But then I got to thinking about the considerable influx of new members, and what this photo would teach someone who doesn’t have experience with CGMs. To my considerable regret, I had overlooked or forgotten posts like Some Dexcom disappointment and Sometimes acting on Dexcom data really needs a fingerprick which seriously point out that CGM is a YDMV technology and it works poorly for some. Instead I was thinking of posts like Why is Sam trying to kill me? that feature “blooper photos”. Anyway, there are obvious conclusions that a new member could draw from the photo of a CGM showing a wildly different story than a pair of meters. Things like CGM technology is dangerously bad, it never should have been approved by the FDA, and closed-loop systems are more likely to kill than to help until somebody manages to invent a good CGM. I was pushing for an explanation of the photo’s context because it truly hadn’t entered my mind that the CGM could be so persistently and grossly wrong, as it apparently is for several members. I will regret for a long time that what I posted was so poorly written and grounded on such incorrect assumptions that it was widely received as an attack on Eric and an indictment of his honesty and motives. Even after DN posted her reply which prompted me to re-read what I had written, I still didn’t get it.

Eric, I was way wrong and I’m truly sorry for the grief I caused you and the other members.

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One of these guys in the group hug is clearly not like the others either.

And for the ladies looking for hugs…can you find what’s different?

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@bkh, thank you for apologizing, and for the record I think you also have a great reputation around here, and I personally hope you keep posting.

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