Continuous Glucose Monitor Removal Video – Transmitter and Sensor
Today, after five days of wearing Medtronic’s iPro Continuous Glucose Monitor, it was time to take it off. The iPro CGM is used by healthcare professionals to gain an in-depth snapshot of a patient’s blood glucose levels over a certain period of time, in my case five days (Medtronic’s web site actually says the iPro can only record for 3 days, but my doctor’s office told me that it can in fact work for up to 5 days). A sensor is inserted under the skin, where it gathers glucose data from the body’s interstitial fluid. The sensor transfers the data to a recorder, which stores it until the doctor’s office downloads the data to a computer at the end of a certain time period (in my case 5 days). Unlike Medtronic’s other continuous glucose monitors available to patients by prescription, with the iPro CGM the patient does not see the data while they are wearing the device. However, the Medtronic iPro’s recorder and sensor look very similar to the transmitter and sensor that work with the Medtronic Guardian CGM and the Medtronic Revel CGM/Insulin Pump combo. Therefore, the off-white piece that I refer to in the video as the “transmitter” is technically the “recorder” in this case, even though they look almost exactly the same (the difference being that the recorder stores the data locally and the transmitter sends it wirelessly to a device for the patient to see.)
**NOTE: This continuous glucose monitor removal video is neither meant to persuade nor deter diabetics from choosing to use a CGM. It is also NOT meant to be an instructional video. Any pain that I felt was due to the bandage pulling my body hair out. In the future, I will be sure to shave the areas where I plan to secure the transmitter (or recorder in this case). In truth, despite the hair pulling, I didn’t feel any pain at all. As always, your decision to use a continuous glucose monitor should be made by you and your doctor.
My name is Kevin Lang and I am a Type 1 Diabetic who was diagnosed in May of 2004 at the age of 27. My last A1C was 6.0 in May 2015. I used to use daily shots of Lantus and Novolog to control my blood sugar until I switched to the MiniMed Paradigm Revel Insulin Pump in February 2011. To learn more about me, follow the about link in the menu bar.
Thanks for this, I was so stressed over removing this I probably watched this 5 times while trying to get myself to remove it. It really helped.