Help! What meter?

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d0zivyhoo

d0zivyhoo

Member Since 2012
Here, I thought all was going to be fine. Just received the kit today in the mail (thank you FDMB!), and, my kitty was unbelievably cooperative. For those of you afraid you are going to hurt your cat, sheesh, she didn't even feel it.

However, after looking at the consumer reports spreadsheet from this site, I noticed that the meter (True2Go) was highly rated by CR, but there was a notation in red that "This meter has been proven extremely inaccurate by as much as 100 mg/dL on a consistent basis and is NOT recommended."

So, now what?! All of the threads I'm seeing on this site show that many of the meters have huge differences in readings. How in the world is anyone figuring out the actual readings and which meter to use?!

Now, I'm getting scared again.

Any light anyone can shed on this subject would be much appreciated.

DZ and Sarah
 
Hi,
This issue comes up every so often, and someone who uses that meter will see your question and let you know what they have experienced. I don't think you have a problem with the True2Go. Since the meter came from Rebecca, who owns this site and takes care of sending out the kits when people request them, I don't think the meter is an issue.

Here's a link to a lengthy discussion from a few months ago on meters:
http://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=79175&p=855695&

Carl
 
Thanks so much, Carl. The thread link you provided was very informative.

One of the posters did make the same comment as I: "I did notice on the CR sticky from Oct 2011 where some were listed in the top 15, however in contradiction, they are highlighted in red with comments to the right that they are all inaccurate for cats and not recommended. If that is not the case, perhaps the sticky should be updated, or at least new information/results should be added. It can be quite confusing for newbies that are trying to absorb a ton of information. Kathie"

So, at least I'm not alone.

In those threads, I found an updated CR spreadsheet posted here by Clark Kent and Marilyn Munster Monroe's person: 2012 CR Meter Ratings

Based on the updated ratings, it looks like I will be getting a different meter. I have spent thousands of dollars on our baby in the last two years, and I guess I'll just have to bite the bullet and let the vet do a curve so I can compare results.

Thanks for your help.

DZ and Sarah
 
If you are thinking about a new meter, I'd suggest walmart's Relion meters. Lots of people here use them (I use a Relion Micro), and the big benefit is that the Relion strips are the best bargain.

What you can do is when you go to the vet, ask them to test using their meter and your meter on the same drop of blood, so you can compare your numbers with theirs. There's nothing wrong, for instance, if their meter reads 20-30 points higher than yours does, as long as the difference is consistent. When it comes to the numbers, it's the trends and patterns that matter most, not the exact numbers.
The only time you really need to pay close attention to the number on the meter is when you see a number that is low, like in the 40-50 ranges. Because you need to react to low numbers. If they see a 350, and you see a 325, that's no big deal. Either way, you're going to know that insulin is needed because the numbers are well above normal.

One of the posters did make the same comment as I: "I did notice on the CR sticky from Oct 2011 where some were listed in the top 15, however in contradiction, they are highlighted in red with comments to the right that they are all inaccurate for cats and not recommended. If that is not the case, perhaps the sticky should be updated, or at least new information/results should be added. It can be quite confusing for newbies that are trying to absorb a ton of information. Kathie"
Click to expand...
I understand where that causes confusion, but try to keep in mind that those comments in red were added by someone here, not by CR. Which is one of the reasons that Rebecca encouraged people to keep up with current information, because things can and do change from year to year.

Carl
 
I also have the meter accurate question. I bought my first meter one touch verio iq and found out that the lancet doesn’t work. I try to look for the relion meter in Walmart but they don’t have this meter in Canada so I got a Accu-chek aviva from Costco. It comes with a lancet multiclick that is so easy to use. Since I have 2 meters I sometimes try the 2 meters at the same time to see the difference. I notice the difference are so big.

Nov 26 amps 18(320)accu-chek,aviva and 15(270)one touch verio iq = difference of 15% 3(50)
pmps 19(342)accu-chek,aviva , 13.5(243) one touch verio iq = difference of 29% 5.5(100)

Nov 2 +6hr, accu-chek aviva 9.4(170) .one touch verio iq 2.1(39) = difference 87% of 7.3 (130)
I was so scare when I see 2.1(39) thinking I might give too much caninsulin(2.25U) to my cat Dongdong.
I always suspect the one touch verio iq is not accurate because there are always error messages and ask me to use another strips. This happen so often sometime I need to try 4 strips before I can get a number from this meter. I called the customer service for an exchange of this meter. They said I can not compare with 2 meters I could only compare 1 meter with the lab result. It might also be the strips that are not working(so expensive). When the staff know that I am using this meter on my cat. She said these meters are for human and not cats. That is why I got these error messages. I told her I have no problem with the accu-chek aviva . She just refuse to replace my meter and claim that it was my own mistake to use this meter on my cat. I get so fed up and hang up. It seems that they don’t want cats owner to use this meter on cats. I know each meter might be different in readings. I can accept 20% difference but 87% is too much. I almost got a heart attack when I see 2.1(39) on Dongdong blood test. nailbite_smile nailbite_smile
 
I also have the meter accurate question. I bought my first meter one touch verio iq and found out that the lancet doesn’t work. I try to look for the relion meter in Walmart but they don’t have this meter in Canada so I got a Accu-chek aviva from Costco. It comes with a lancet multiclick that is so easy to use. Since I have 2 meters I sometimes try the 2 meters at the same time to see the difference. I notice the difference are so big.

Nov 26 amps 18(320)accu-chek,aviva and 15(270)one touch verio iq = difference of 15% 3(50)
pmps 19(342)accu-chek,aviva , 13.5(243) one touch verio iq = difference of 29% 5.5(100)

Nov 27 +6hr, accu-chek aviva 9.4(170) .one touch verio iq 2.1(39) = difference 87% of 7.3 (130)

I was so scare when I see 2.1(39) thinking I might give too much caninsulin(2.25U) to my cat Dongdong.
I always suspect the one touch verio iq is not accurate because there are always error messages and ask me to use another strips. This happen so often sometime I need to try 4 strips before I can get a number from this meter. I called the customer service for an exchange of this meter. They said I can not compare with 2 meters I could only compare 1 meter with the lab result. It might also be the strips that are not working(so expensive). When the staff know that I am using this meter on my cat. She said these meters are for human and not cats. That is why I got these error messages. I told her I have no problem with the accu-chek aviva . She just refuse to replace my meter and claim that it was my own mistake to use this meter on my cat. I get so fed up and hang up. It seems that they don’t want cats owner to use this meter on cats. I know each meter might be different in readings. I can accept 20% difference but 87% is too much. I almost got a heart attack when I see 2.1(39) on Dongdong blood test. nailbite_smile nailbite_smile
 
Thanks, Carl. You've been a big help. And, gosh, Udong, I'd be freaking out with a 89% difference too. Wow.

DZ and Sarah
 
Meters are dirt cheap, unless you go with the alpha-track or some such specifically made for cats. But I don't think many on here recommend that. If you want alpha-track numbers, just take what you get from a human meter & add 30. That's cheaper than shelling out $200 for a meter with $1 for each test strip.

Grabbing another (human) meter will set you back all of $20 if that &it's a one-time expense.

It's the test strips that are the killer.

In that vein, I'd strongly recommend shopping around the web. I got ripped off to the tune of $100 for 100 test strips for the breeze 2 at my local walgreens when I bought the meter, but after shopping around found I could get the same strips for a much more reasonable $40 on amazon for subsequent purchases with free shipping to boot.

I absolutely love the breeze 2 despite its bulk. Never have to handle test strips, just loading a disk of 10 & popping each out with a push of a button. Near top rankings in CR. I didn't go for the accu-check variety because it takes 1.5 micro-liter versus 1.0, and that can be a big consideration when pricking a cats ear for blood. Too small a drop & you either have to prick the cat again or do that after wasting a strip! My cats ears are bruised enough as it is...

It might seem attractive to go below that 1 microliter sample & there are meters that will do that. But I sense a correlation between smaller sample sizes in that range & inaccurate results in the CR rankings. I don't spy a meter with a really tiny sample size & top accuracy/repeatability when you go below that 1 microliter barrier. That's just my sense of things.
 
Thanks for the info!

I just bought the ReliOn before I saw your post, and I will see how it matches up with the vet's curve this week. Based on those findings, I might very well invest in the Breeze. That's pretty cool about loading 10 strips! Not having to mess with them would really be a bonus. Strips are so difficult to load without wondering if I got skin oil on the edge or not, and fumbling with them after pricking kitty's ear is definitely bothersome.

DZ and Sarah
 
Looks to me like the relion test strips come in at .30-.40/strip depending on your particular meter on Amazon.

As I've mentioned, the breeze 2 strips come in at .37-.40/strip at amazon, though it's quite possible to get ripped off to the tune of $1/strip for this meter. It looks like the consumer reports article is assuming >$1/strip and it's certainly possible to get ripped off like that if you just buy them at your local Walgreens as I did for my first 100.

To me, .30 versus .40 is a negligible difference for the improvement in convenience & potential accuracy with the breeze 2, in part for reasons you mentioned in your post. I never even touch a strip. Pull a lever, out pops a strip. Do my test, then hold the meter upside down over the garbage pail, push a button, and the strip falls out into the garbage. Digital readout on the meter tells me how many tests I have left on the current disk. Brilliant. Somebody was thinking when he designed this thing.

Just make sure you shop around for your strips, so you don't get ripped off like I did. Not sure it's worth $1/strip for a nice human interface like that.
 
I'm glad I stumbled on this thread! Thanks for the tips here. I really don't like my meter much (or paying truckloads of money at Walgreens for test strips). And I've heard a lot of people on here say good things about the Relion meter. As much as I hate going to Walmart, I'm going to brave a trip over there tomorrow and pick up a new meter and some strips for Zoozey.
 
I'm not a fan of Wally World either - the diabetic supplies are the ONLY reason I will set foot in one. Unless I fail to plan ahead, I just order the test strips online.
 
yep - Walmart is my nearest shop (grocery or otherwise) so I get most supplies there but I wish it was Target ;-)

Relion are pretty good. I have the Confirm and the Prime - the numbers are a little different between them. Prime strips are cheaper.
Remember, the numbers you get at home will be different from any at the vets - vet stress should account for this.
 
Thanks for all of the input, everyone.

Baby is at the vet today having her first (and I hope only) official non-home curve. I gave them both of my meters (Tru2Go and ReliOn Micro) and asked them to log those results along with their expensive kitty meter findings. I will repost as soon as I have the results.

DZ and Sarah
 
Hi all. I'm also going to post this as a new thread just in case.

I just returned from the vet's office for my kitty's official BG curve, and they were nice enough to use my two meters, comparing the results with their feline calibrated Alphtrak. The vet is a large speciality hospital, and I have faith that they keep up their meter calibrations.

In full disclosure, they used a leg vein to get the results, not capilaries from the ear. Can anyone tell me if that makes a difference?

Anyway, the differences between the meter readings are quite vast, I'm afraid. Here they are.

The first set is the Alphtrak result divided by the other meter (so, you would need to multiply the human meter reading by the meter's number below to reach the feline calibrated result:

Tru2Go (Walgreen's - highly rated by last year's Consumer Reports, but not this year): 2.046511628; 2.256410256; 2.020408163; 2.341772152; 1.876404494
ReliOn Micro (Walmart - highly rated by this year's Consumer Reports): 2.588235294; 2.2; 1.571428571; 1.439688716; 2.226666667

The next set is the meter subtracted from the Alphtrak results in actual points:

Tru2Go (Walgreen's): diff. 45; 49; 100; 212; 156
ReliOn Micro (Walmart): diff. 54; 48; 72; 113; 184

I've been told by several people in this group to just add 30 to the human meter results. However, that's even worse to come up with some sort of calculation to receive the correct results:

Tru2Go (Walgreen's): 1.205479452; 1.275362319; 1.546875; 1.968085106; 1.605769231
ReliOn Micro (Walmart): 1.375; 1.257142857; 1.269230769; 1.289198606; 1.855555556

And, again, the difference in actual points:

Tru2Go (Walgreen's): diff. 15; 19; 70; 182; 126
ReliOn Micro (Walmart): diff. 24; 18; 42; 83; 154

I suppose I could just double the results from the Tru2Go. However, the ReliOn is all over the place, and, its reliability was rated by CR as excellent.

If you'd like to do your own calculations, here are the actual numbers:

AlphaTrak: 88, 88, 198, 370, 334.
Tru2Go: 43, 39, 98, 158, 178
ReliOn Micro: 34, 40, 126, 257, 150

I only had level 1 for the Tru2Go control liquid, but it tested within the correct range. The ReliOn control liquids are on order, so I haven't yet done the control on it. The ReliOn is brand new. The Tru2Go was received from this group.

I would really like some feedback on this issue. I may very well spend the bucks and purchase an AlphaTrak just to be safe here. In the meantime, I'm thinking of using the Tru2Go and double the results.

DZ and Sarah
 
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