AlphaTrak vs Relion: difference of 100?

[123joan]

I bought a new Relion meter for my daughter yesterday. Her cat is newly diagnosed (bummer). I went with her to the vet appointment yesterday. The vet checked her cat's glucose level with her AlphaTrak, and it read 490. The Relion read 393 on the same drop of blood. What is with that?
I brought that new Relion to my house today, to see if perhaps it was faulty. Both the new Relion meter and my old trusty one I've been using for Lucy since July registered the same value on Lucy's drop of blood (well, 287 vs 288). Lucy the guinea pig!

 

[bookw0rm]

The alphatrack claims to be keyed for pets; relion is coded for humans. Experience shows the AT runs about 40 points higher than human meters, more so at higher numbers. (keep in mind the 20% variance meters are allowed to have to be billed "accurate"; higher number equates to higher variance.) I wouldn't worry too much. It doesn't matter which meter you use, as long as you use the same one & don't mix & match. Remember, you're focusing on trends, not individual numbers.

 

[Carl & Polly & Bob (GA)]

That's right. And Joan, the only time you really need to be concerned is if you see a low number. Whether it's a 350 or a 450, you'd still give insulin. When you get down to 50, then you want to make sure your meter is close to the mark. From what I have read here, the variance between AT meters and human meters is less the lower the numbers are.
I know that when people follow the Lantus tight regulation protocol, a cat will have the dose reduced when they see a low nadir. For those using human meters, the line for the automatic dose reduction is 50. If they use an AT meter, the line is 80. So most people figure a 30 point difference between the two in the low ranges. I know that one of the first things my vet told me, when she told me to buy a relion meter, was "keep in mind, that number you get is going to be 30 points or so less than "reality". Of course, reality depends on your point of view. To my vet, the Alpha Trak was "reality". To me, what my relion micro said was the reality.

Carl