2 monitors - different readings...

[yay]

Hi

Firstly thank you for all your support and welcoming me to the forum. OK will start the monitor story from the beginning.

Was using a friends monitor before I got mine - and when I got mine (SD Codefree) I compared it to my friends. Same drop of blood - my friends 4.7 mine 6.2. So kind of thought one of them is wrong.

Well had my diabetic foot check with my diabetic nurse yesterday and she issued me with another monitor yaaaaay I thought. This one is an AgaMatri Wavesense Jazz. So proceeded with some readings and it seems to be reading lower like my friends did. Here are yesterdays readings:

New Jazz machine 4.6 Old SD Codefree 6.0
New Jazz machine 6.0 Old SD Codefree 8.1
New Jazz machine 4.3 Old SD Codefree 6.7

The new Jazz machine came with testing control solution so did that. Range should be between 4.4 to 6.7. I did it 3 times and got 6.9, 7.1 and 7.2. According to my logic that means that the new Jazz machine is reading higher than it should.... which makes the lower figures it is giving even lower.....

I obviously want to believe the new Jazz machine is correct and my original one was reading too high - but I don't want to deceive myself. I was diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes with a long term blood of 52 - and during that period was over dosing on chocolate, ice cream and sugary things. I have stopped that plus am eating hardly anything and 'following the rules' so the lower figures do have a ring of truth. But as I said I do not want to deceive myself.

My plan is to ring the Jazz machine people today re the control, and depending what they say see if I can swap the machine at the GP surgery. Other idea is to go out and buy one of the top of the range machines as a 'control' machine (strips too expensive to use regularly - but occasionally would be ok)

Has anyone experienced this? Does it matter that the control is higher? I know at the end of the day its the 3 month blood taken at the GPs surgery is what is important, but am trying to test the food I am eating so really need a 'fairly' accurate machine (I know there is some 'flexibilty' in the readings...). Also if I do buy a new machine - any recommendations?

Thank you.

 

[Owen]

Hi

Firstly thank you for all your support and welcoming me to the forum. OK will start the monitor story from the beginning.

Was using a friends monitor before I got mine - and when I got mine (SD Codefree) I compared it to my friends. Same drop of blood - my friends 4.7 mine 6.2. So kind of thought one of them is wrong.

Well had my diabetic foot check with my diabetic nurse yesterday and she issued me with another monitor yaaaaay I thought. This one is an AgaMatri Wavesense Jazz. So proceeded with some readings and it seems to be reading lower like my friends did. Here are yesterdays readings:

New Jazz machine 4.6 Old SD Codefree 6.0
New Jazz machine 6.0 Old SD Codefree 8.1
New Jazz machine 4.3 Old SD Codefree 6.7

The new Jazz machine came with testing control solution so did that. Range should be between 4.4 to 6.7. I did it 3 times and got 6.9, 7.1 and 7.2. According to my logic that means that the new Jazz machine is reading higher than it should.... which makes the lower figures it is giving even lower.....

I obviously want to believe the new Jazz machine is correct and my original one was reading too high - but I don't want to deceive myself. I was diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes with a long term blood of 52 - and during that period was over dosing on chocolate, ice cream and sugary things. I have stopped that plus am eating hardly anything and 'following the rules' so the lower figures do have a ring of truth. But as I said I do not want to deceive myself.

My plan is to ring the Jazz machine people today re the control, and depending what they say see if I can swap the machine at the GP surgery. Other idea is to go out and buy one of the top of the range machines as a 'control' machine (strips too expensive to use regularly - but occasionally would be ok)

Has anyone experienced this? Does it matter that the control is higher? I know at the end of the day its the 3 month blood taken at the GPs surgery is what is important, but am trying to test the food I am eating so really need a 'fairly' accurate machine (I know there is some 'flexibilty' in the readings...). Also if I do buy a new machine - any recommendations?

Thank you.

The meter's due to calibration tolerance are only ever going to be a general guide. The hba1c is the accurate reading, but with readings you are getting the suggestion is going to be a good long term result. Which ever meter you stick with, you will soon have a mental calibration using hba1c as the benchmark. The rise in bg after meals will be another good indicator to look for in quest for perfection.

 

[yay]

Thanks . Ok I rang the new Jazz machine company and I got the control figures wrong. I went by the range in the booklet rather than on the test strips..... The range on test strips is 5.8 to 8.8 so my tests of 6.9, 7.1 and 7.2 are approx in the middle yaaaaaay. On the basis of this I am confident to accept the lower readings especially as they correlate to my friends machine. And anyhow we will see when I have my 3 month test. Incidentally just did another comparison and 3.6 on new Jazz machine, 5.9 on old SD Codefree.(And did feel my blood sugar was low as opposed to normal)

 

[Mark Parrott]

All meters are just a guide. A more expensive one won't be any more accurate than a cheaper one. I have 3 & the all have different readings. To see how food is affecting you, just read the difference between before & after, & if it's no more than 3mmols difference, then that's ok.

 

[yay]

Thanks Mark. That makes sense - make sure its no more than 3mmols. Thank you I will do that.

 

[Lilian]

A friend of mine can do it three times with the same blood on the same meter and gets three very different readings with quite a big difference between them.