Libra 2

[Vamppir8]

Ok new to this device, had it a week, not that impressed to be honest. Daughter had one ages with meow meow so know a bit.

1. I prefer to use the supplied reader as my phone is a bit chunky to fit in pocket. Anyone know why the alarms stop working, worked first few days, scans ok, downloads graph, but alarm just stopped working for no reason.

2. Just a question, sure everyone asks it, the bot at libra just rolled out some rubbish. Why do you have to beep it if it is continuously monitoring your blood? Why? Its receiving your glucose level 24/7 for the alarms to work, so why do you have to physically beep it? The reader keeps data for 8 hrs so its there anyway? Is it a copyright issue on something? Patent?

3. Downloading data. Anyone else have gaps? look at picture, it keeps 8 hrs of data and I didn't zap it in 9 hrs hence the gap to the right but what happened to the bit on left? What's that about?

4. Seems pointless at night, had me up 3 times for hypos first night, waited 5 minutes and bloods went back up without munching. Heat? Sweat? Pressure?

Thanks in advance, any help, comments appreciated.

 

[Nick Cliff]

Hi @Vamppir8. Regarding the gaps, if they continue to occur I suggest you contact. Abbott support. I'm trialling Libre 2 at the moment, had this issue, and they're now sending me a replacement. Best of luck, Nick.

 

[Vamppir8]

Hi @Vamppir8. Regarding the gaps, if they continue to occur I suggest you contact. Abbott support. I'm trialling Libre 2 at the moment, had this issue, and they're now sending me a replacement. Best of luck, Nick.

Yeah trying to figure out what it is. Both phone and reader show a whole graph its just the app misses a bit off. It shows the bubble, but not the line. Just trying to work out what sequence does what ie use one or the other all day see what happens. Also cannot get the graph to update using phone, last 3 hrs is there on phone but go in app and its not there after it says merging data... shall have to keep experimenting till I can confirm which sequence.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

Also cannot get the graph to update using phone, last 3 hrs is there on phone but go in app and its not there after it says merging data... shall have to keep experimenting till I can confirm which sequence.

Not sure what you mean. The phone app and the reader are independent: if you want a complete graph on both you need to scan with both of them with gaps of no more than 8 hours. LibreView is supposed to be able to merge the data (and for all I know succeeds now, though there have been problems in the past) but that still won't be visible in either the phone app or the reader, it'll only be when you look on LibreView.

 

[Nick Cliff]

Yeah trying to figure out what it is. Both phone and reader show a whole graph its just the app misses a bit off. It shows the bubble, but not the line. Just trying to work out what sequence does what ie use one or the other all day see what happens. Also cannot get the graph to update using phone, last 3 hrs is there on phone but go in app and its not there after it says merging data... shall have to keep experimenting till I can confirm which sequence.

Thought I read somewhere that you can only start the sensor on either the reader or the phone app, not both? Abbott will have the data you have recorded so can help you if you're doing something wrong to cause the gaps, or if sensor is malfunctioning.

 

[Robin]

Thought I read somewhere that you can only start the sensor on either the reader or the phone app, not both? Abbott will have the data you have recorded so can help you if you're doing something wrong to cause the gaps, or if sensor is malfunctioning.

I think it’s a bit complicated. I believe you can only get alarms on one or other, not both, and you get the alarms on whichever you start first. I also think that if you want to use the reader, you have to start that first, so then would be tied to getting alarms on the reader only.
(Someone will be along to correct me if I'm wrong, I only use the reader, so have no personal experience, I was just reading up on it once in case I wanted to use my phone).

 

[grovesy]

I use the reader and phone but you can't have alarms on both.

 

[Vamppir8]

I think it’s a bit complicated. I believe you can only get alarms on one or other, not both, and you get the alarms on whichever you start first. I also think that if you want to use the reader, you have to start that first, so then would be tied to getting alarms on the reader only.
(Someone will be along to correct me if I'm wrong, I only use the reader, so have no personal experience, I was just reading up on it once in case I wanted to use my phone).

Yep that's right, registered with reader, you can still use phone to read though. Been using both for a week no bother. Just in case I forget one and phone one updates over net so don't have to plug it in. Was working fine then they just stopped. Scans fine, does graphs on its screen same with phone. See if they come back in a week when I change it.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

For what it's worth I use both the reader and my phone. So the reader provides alarms, and (it seems to me) makes it easier to make them quiet (so it just vibrates rather than making a loud sound). I just don't bother with uploading any data from the reader: I just have my phone do that.

Which means I don't get the test strip values uploaded, which is a shame, but they didn't seem that valuable. (I'm still hoping that at some point Librelink will be updated so it'll scan my Novopens to upload insulin doses, which seems to me slightly more useful.)

 

[Vamppir8]

For what it's worth I use both the reader and my phone. So the reader provides alarms, and (it seems to me) makes it easier to make them quiet (so it just vibrates rather than making a loud sound). I just don't bother with uploading any data from the reader: I just have my phone do that.

Which means I don't get the test strip values uploaded, which is a shame, but they didn't seem that valuable. (I'm still hoping that at some point Librelink will be updated so it'll scan my Novopens to upload insulin doses, which seems to me slightly more useful.)

Wow yes I was thinking that today pen's would be awesome, memory loss, lucky its got last jab on top. But if it uploaded as well and alarm if you forgot that would be awesome, also alarm double jabbing.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

But if it uploaded as well and alarm if you forgot that would be awesome, also alarm double jabbing.

The terms and conditions for LibreView have been recently updated to allow for this, and Abbott have said they expect to release the update this year.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

The terms and conditions for LibreView have been recently updated to allow for this, and Abbott have said they expect to release the update this year.

Not the alarms, though. That would make some kind of sense, though by the time you could get an alarm for double injection it would be too late. Having alarms for missed doses seems more practical.

 

[Vamppir8]

Hi @Vamppir8. Regarding the gaps, if they continue to occur I suggest you contact. Abbott support. I'm trialling Libre 2 at the moment, had this issue, and they're now sending me a replacement. Best of luck, Nick.

Got it. OK it transmits to devices for alarms live, phone or monitor, but only downloads when you scan.... and then only 8 hrs worth. I was in bed 9. Sort of explains it except in middle of gap I have a test bubble so why didn't it download bit to the left of bubble? Right side fair cop.

 

[rebrascora]

My bet would be that your levels were rising sharply when you took that 7.4 reading because it appears to be after food. The reading is a prediction (extrapolation) based on previous readings but with levels changing quickly it isn't sure how accurate that reading is until it gets more data after that reading..... which is why people sometimes get a reading which the graph doesn't go through. The difficulty has then arisen that you didn't scan again within 8 hours to verify that reading so the Libre can't accurately judge what that part of the graph actually looked like, so it leaves it blank for a period just before that reading as well. My guess is that it isn't a sensor fault but a problem with the algorithm being unable to cope with (or trust) very rapidly changing levels and the fact that it didn't get any subsequent data to go back and fill in the gap afterwards.

I find it quite impressive that you are restrained enough not to scan within a 9 hour period. I am always too interested (nosey) to know what my sneaky levels are up to and keep them in line, to go that long without scanning.... Maybe I am just obsessive and should "get a life!". I resent losing an hour of data during sensor changeover. 🙄

 

[Vamppir8]

My bet would be that your levels were rising sharply when you took that 7.4 reading because it appears to be after food. The reading is a prediction (extrapolation) based on previous readings but with levels changing quickly it isn't sure how accurate that reading is until it gets more data after that reading..... which is why people sometimes get a reading which the graph doesn't go through. The difficulty has then arisen that you didn't scan again within 8 hours to verify that reading so the Libre can't accurately judge what that part of the graph actually looked like, so it leaves it blank for a period just before that reading as well. My guess is that it isn't a sensor fault but a problem with the algorithm being unable to cope with (or trust) very rapidly changing levels and the fact that it didn't get any subsequent data to go back and fill in the gap afterwards.

I find it quite impressive that you are restrained enough not to scan within a 9 hour period. I am always too interested (nosey) to know what my sneaky levels are up to and keep them in line, to go that long without scanning.... Maybe I am just obsessive and should "get a life!". I resent losing an hour of data during sensor changeover. 🙄

To be honest it's first time in years slept through the night, usually up and down all night. To be honest not the best time or maybe it is to start libra. Changed job same week, whole metabolism has changed. Nothing is as it was a week ago. Being very cautious.

My bet would be that your levels were rising sharply when you took that 7.4 reading because it appears to be after food. The reading is a prediction (extrapolation) based on previous readings but with levels changing quickly it isn't sure how accurate that reading is until it gets more data after that reading..... which is why people sometimes get a reading which the graph doesn't go through. The difficulty has then arisen that you didn't scan again within 8 hours to verify that reading so the Libre can't accurately judge what that part of the graph actually looked like, so it leaves it blank for a period just before that reading as well. My guess is that it isn't a sensor fault but a problem with the algorithm being unable to cope with (or trust) very rapidly changing levels and the fact that it didn't get any subsequent data to go back and fill in the gap afterwards.

I find it quite impressive that you are restrained enough not to scan within a 9 hour period. I am always too interested (nosey) to know what my sneaky levels are up to and keep them in line, to go that long without scanning.... Maybe I am just obsessive and should "get a life!". I resent losing an hour of data during sensor changeover. 🙄

The reading is a prediction? It knows your blood reading all the time as the alarms work (or dont after 3 days...), dont it plot from that data? Thing I dont understand if it knows for alarms why do you beep it, why dont it just record into memory? Only thing we could come up with is some kind of copyright or patent issue as I've checked alarms they are spot on.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

It knows your blood reading all the time as the alarms work

But it doesn't! It knows what's in your interstitial fluid, but that reflects what your blood was ~15 minutes ago. So (for better or for worse) they have an algorithm to try and use several interstitial readings (I don't think we know how many or over what period) to predict more closely what BG is now. Often that works well, but not always.

 

[helli]

The reading is a prediction? It knows your blood reading all the time as the alarms work (or dont after 3 days...), dont it plot from that data?

CGMs such as Libre use interstitial fluid readings (ISR) to calculate blood glucose levels (BG).
ISR is about 15 minutes behind BG.
Libre attempts to overcome this delay by extrapolating the trend on the graph and predicts your current value.
This works pretty well if your BG is level or going in the same direction. However, if your trend changes in the last 15 minutes, the prediction may take some time to catch up. This is most obvious for me when I treat a hypo - Libre will show my BG getting lower when the "true graph" has changed direction and it is actually rising.
This prediction also struggles if it spots the recent change in direction or if the readings are noisy (jumping up and down), It will then ask you to wait 10 minutes and scan again,
I had never thought about what period it looks at the trend until @Bruce Stephens mentioned it. I wonder if it needs at least 10 minutes of readings going in the same direction to make that prediction?

This is one of the the reasons why it is always recommended to test hypo recovery with a finger prick. If you relied on the Libre at that stage you may over treat.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

I wonder if it needs at least 10 minutes of readings going in the same direction to make that prediction?

Probably it's something like that, and if that's not true then it'll require that there's not too much variation over some period (maybe the same period) and if neither of those is true then it'll say to go away and try again in 10 minutes.

 

[Vamppir8]

So what's point in meow meow then? Same sensor, if its 15 mins behind. I've tested on meter and libra they are usually spot on .5 each way.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

So what's point in meow meow then? Same sensor, if its 15 mins behind.

All CGMs work on the same principle. (As far as I know, anyway. I think there's just something hard about continuous monitoring of blood itself. People have been working on other ways to do this (really non-invasive ones) but my impression is they're still some way away.)

And yes, it means you're getting a reading from something that's ~15 minutes behind, but how much changes in 15 minutes, really? Just as test strips aren't massively accurate (though they're very good), CGMs have that and this time issue, but they're still enormously useful.