Hello there.

[Bearos]

Have been Type 1 for 47 years and using the Freestyle Libre for the last five. Does anyone else have problems inserting them? This morning the applicator seemed stuck and I had to press hard to apply the sensor. I'm now left with it securely applied, but with a metal piece sticking out of the centre! My last sensor but one sensor stopped after ten days working accurately despite being securely attached. I live alone and have reduced hypo awareness so I find the sensor is really useful when blood sugars go low. Abbot must be fed up of me returning malfunctioning sensors to them.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

This morning the applicator seemed stuck and I had to press hard to apply the sensor.

I've had one that did that. Perhaps if I'd pressed hard enough I'd have ended up with the needle stuck in my arm, but I didn't.

I guess failures are going to happen now and again.

Abbot must be fed up of me returning malfunctioning sensors to them.

They're probably fine. It's just a mechanical failure (rare, one hopes).

 

[rebrascora]

That metal piece sticking out of the centre of the sensor is the introducer needle and needle removing as carefully aas possible keeping it perpendicular to your skin as you do so and then disposing of in your sharps bin. The needle is supposed to retract back into the applicator when you apply it by a spring in the mechanism, but obviously something has not worked smoothly and you are left with the needle in your arm. If you cannot manage to get it out yourself then you need to seek medical help to remove it. If you manage to get it out without disturbing the filament, then the sensor should work OK, but it would be easy for the filament to get kinked if you don't manage to remove it in a nice perpendicular motion, so do check the sensor against finger pricks a few times to ensure that it is working OK once you get it out. I might take a photo of it showing the metal needle sticking out whilst it is on your arm before removing it and I would contact Abbott about it anyway as they need to know the application process has malfunctioned.

 

[Bearos]

Thank you, Barbara, for your careful, clear and helpful advice. I've had this happen once before and thought it was me mistakenly applying the sensor. I very carefully removed the needle, but think the filament has been kinked because the the sensor is reading retry in an hour. Very frustrating! I shall contact Abbot straightaway armed with this information. Back to the old fingerpricking! x

 

[rebrascora]

Do stress to Abbott that the needle didn't retract and was left stuck in your arm and you had to manually remove it. Very bad that you are having such problems. I have been very fortunate so far with Libre and it is a great bit of kit when it works but malfunctions like this are not good.

Don't you feel awkward about reporting it/them. It is Abbott who should feel awkward! Hope your replacement arrives soon.

 

[Bearos]

Hi Barbara, have already contacted Abbott and replacement is on its way in a few days.

 

[rebrascora]

Good to hear it. Fingers crossed your run of bad luck with them has come to an end.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Hi Barbara, have already contacted Abbott and replacement is on its way in a few days.

Great to hear @Bearos

Thankfully these misfires are few and far between!

 

[trophywench]

I have had one do that last month - the filament never even went into my skin because being plastic/teflon/ whatever and not having the introducer needle pass along its length, it simply folded at a right angle on the surface of my arm, which was not apparent until it obviously refused to even 'start' so I removed it. Same error message. Methinks a duff batch.