OneTouch Ultra Mini?

[Michaelc26]

So I'm completely in my head about all this and driving myself crazy... Need some advise!

Does anyone here use the OneTouch Ultra Mini's? I've read great reviews about them but then I got the third degree from my vet saying I need to use the Alpha Trak II wich is insanely expensive...

Some clarity would be much appreciated.

1) Are they relatively accurate?
2) I've read they read lower than it actually is (Ideally so a human doesn't go hypo)
3) Is is possible to mess up the test? It seems easy and straight forward, small prick my cat doesn't care. Blood goes into the strip and the machine tells the reading, (Pending its enough blood, luckily it doesn't take much but if it doesn't have enough it tells me) I try to be careful not to touch the end of the strips per instructions, can that affect it drastically?
4) What is the IDEAL number range to shoot for on a human meter? I've read anywhere from 40-100 to 80-150
5) I see ALOT of people talk about the Relion meter from walmart but its discontinued? The new one relion prime is out, haven't heard great reviews about it but the cost basis of that one is very tempting

I ask because I prefer home monitor over a day at the vets and gives me more freedom to adjust her dosage and monitor her without undo stress to her. Luckily I have a very docile cat who cares less what I do to her haha. After 3 wks of hilly numbers I want to make sure the meter I have is showing close to accurate

 

[BJM]

That meter is fine.

We suggest using an inexpensive human glucometer with pet-specific reference numbers. One many of us use is the WalMart Relion Confirm, or Confirm Micro, which is also sold at American Diabetes Wholesale as as the Arkray USA Glucocard 01 or 01 Mini (same manufacturer - Arkray USA). It uses a tiny blood droplet and the cost is significantly lower for test strips (like $0.36 each).

Comparing a human glucometer to a pet-specific glucometer is like reading temperature in Celsius vs Fahrenheit. Both are correct. You just need to know the reference ranges to interpret what the numbers mean.

[Glucose reference ranges are unsubstantiated and have been removed by Moderator]

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Examples of using the chart:

Ex. You are a new insulin user and you test your cat before giving insulin. The test is 300. It probably is safe to give insulin.

Ex. You are an established user of Lantus, following the Tight Regulation protocol. You've tested around +5 to +7 to spot the nadir. It is 200 mg/dL. You probably need to increase the dose, following the instructions for the protocol.

Ex. Your cat is acting funny. The eyes are a bit dilated. You are concerned and test the glucose. The number is 35 mg/dL. ACK! The cat may be in a hypoglycemic state. You quickly follow the HYPO protocol linked in the glucose reference values chart. (which we really, really, suggest you print out and post on your refrigerator.)

 

[KPassa]

The OneTouch is fine to use. The reason many of us use the ReliOn brand is because they're the cheapest test strips around. The Confirm/Micro takes the smallest drop of blood so it's the best one to start out with for those new to testing who might have more difficulty getting blood. The ReliOn Prime had the cheapest strips but it does require a slightly larger blood drop.

 

[Michaelc26]

Where is this conversion chart you speak of? For example I did a test yesterday and in the one touch she is showing 133 is she not actually at 133 mg/dl Or close to it?

I checked at my walmart and the only have relion prime that a lot don't seem to like, they like the older that I can't find. Thoughts?

( I know I'm driving everyone crazy, sorry I'm just trying to get everything sorted out to keep her around for along time)

 

[BJM]

American Diabetes Wholesale carries the Arkray Glucocard 01 which is the same thing as the ReliOn Confirm. Click on our shopping icon at the top of the page. Purchases made that way help support this message board.

No conversions of numbers are needed; the reference numbers posted above show you what various ranges of glucose tests IN CATS may mean.

Think temperature in Celsius vs Fahrenheit; describe it that way to your vet, too. The numbers above are based on the work of Roomp and Rand, and our experiences on this message board.

 

[Tara & Buster]

For the record, I have been using the ReliOn Prime for over 1.5 years and it's fine. Test strips are $9 for a box of 50 (cheapest around) and I get them from Walmart online. Free shipping on purchases over $50 so I buy 6 boxes at a time. I hope your kitty finds the way to good numbers soon.

 

[Maggies Mom Debby]

I used a One Touch and it's perfectly ok to use. I ordered my strips online to get the best price, but I do understand the Walmart Relion (or Arkay) is very popular here because the strips are so much cheaper.

Meters measure the glucose in the blood. The Alpha Track is designed for feline blood. Human meters are designed to read human blood. Humans meters can be used to test our cats because when we look at the number we use a different range of values for what is normal, low and high (see BJM's post). As long as you know which meter is giving you the reading, either can be used for felines. Most people here use human meters. Here is the page about the comparison: http://www.felinediabetes.com/glucometer.htm

Also remember that ALL meters, human and pet, have a 20 percent variance from a lab test.(http://type1diabetes.about.com/od/techn ... -Meter.htm). This means that when a meter reads 100, it could be anywhere from 80-120. 200 could be 160-240.

So the number you get from ANY meter is not 100 percent accurate. What it is meant to do to show trends up or down, if it's safe to give insulin, and allow you to monitor dangerous situations.

I hope this helps!