So every time there is a small issue with our current meter, freestyle (abbots) solution to the problem is to send us a new meter. This is all fine, however I am concerned about having to take the new meter to the lab to get blood work for comparison and meter accuracy, because between our 4 meters it seems like we have to do lab comparisons every month because there is always something happening with one of them. So I am wondering does everyone always take a new meter to the lab for blood work comparison before using the meter or do you just start using it? They are going to send me some control solution. Would the control solution test be good enough to test the accuracy? I am tired of doing lab work for each little issue with meters.
what problems are you having with the meters? We might start using a meter without having it checked but we always test it against another one of our meters that has been "cleared" from a lab test.We will then have it checked ASAP. I have also had a meter checked against the lab by my blood so that the kids don't have to come with me to the lab. All meters that are used regularly are checked with the kid's quarterly lab work and we have only had to get rid of 3 or 4 meters over the past years due to inaccuracy. If I didn't have a meter in the house that I knew was fairly accurate, I would definitely get a new meter checked against the lab asap as we have also seen the results of using a meter that was "out". I don't like using control solution as to me all it does is tell me that the meter is capable of making some sort of reading but that is not good enough for me. The clinic gives us a 20% variance on meters(again a bit high for me but liveable) - so for a BG of 6 that means that you had better be between a 4.8 and a 7.2...similarly if BG is 20 that could mean anywhere from 16-24 - huge range! Seems to me that you run the risk of treating non-lows if you don't check that the meter and also on the flip side - of having your child run higher than desired if you don't have some sort of check. These things are just tools - but any meter should ALWAYS be calibrated and calibrated regularly- they do it in the labs all the time with their equipment as the ramifications are too serious - so for those of you who DON"T get your meters checked - WHY NOT??
In my almost 10 years of being diabetic, I've never taken my meter into a lab for a comparison test. If I feel like it's being wonky, I do a few control solution tests and might get a different meter and do comparisons.
We've never checked because we've never been told it was necessary. I've noticed the two people who do are in Canada.
I'm the other person from Canada that always gets them check (sooner or later). Which can sometimes be frustrating because lately we have issues with one or two of them and were sent new ones... Which means another trip to the lab. I decided to just use the last new one without the lab comparison and will do them all next time around. We have been told by dr. Dawrant (I am sure, skimom, you know of him as he is one of the endos at the ACH in Calgary, that when you check against another meter, you risk getting a compounded variance of more than 20%.