PROS
Convenient - Because the sensor is part of the pump, it makes the system extremely convenient as you only need one device at all times
- Unlike the Dexcom system which is its own thing - you can use their device or your phone - you never have to worry about getting too far away from your device as your pump is always on you
- Sometimes I would get too far from my phone and Dexcom would lose signal with the sensor. I never have that problem with the Guardian system
- Very convenient as one screen shows everything/one device controls everything
- Auto-mode is a new feature of the pump where it works with the sensor to control blood sugar levels through basal adjustment.
- It is a delivery feature which automatically controls basal insulin delivery to regulate glucose levels to a target sensor glucose (SG) amount.
- Basically, it adjusts basal to keep you in range
- The way it does this is through the blood sugar levels displayed by the Guardian sensor on the pump
- If everything is followed correctly, the Guardian sensor blood sugar readings are pretty accurate
- Usually when I calibrate, so far from my experience, it’s always been within 40 points of what my actual blood sugar is
CONS
Many calibrations - I remember with Dexcom, they would ask for calibrations every 12 hours. I don’t know what Guardian broadcasts itself as, but it definitely asks for calibrations many more than just two times a day
- Additionally, if you don’t calibrate when it asks, it sometimes shuts down the sensor and won’t give you any more readings until you do calibrate, which can be frustrating at times if you don’t calibrate immediately
- I also noticed that many times I have calibrated before I go to bed, but then it will ask for a calibration in the middle of the night. Because I didn’t wake up at 3 AM to calibrate, when I wake up in the morning, the sensor would be off and I didn’t get any readings for the entire night
- This has happened multiple times
- If you silence the alerts, it vibrates, which can be annoying
- Especially if it’s just asking for a calibration in the middle of the night as mentioned earlier, it won’t stop vibrating until you respond
- Sometimes it’s not urgent messages, like a blood sugar alert. But it won’t stop alerting you
- Because the the system is not set up on the phone like Dexcom, you are unable to share your data continuously with others
- This can be hard for parents who want to monitor their children's blood sugars and keep them safe
- With Dexcom, I found that I was able to re-use the same site probably for at least two weeks at a time, this hasn’t really worked for me with Guardian
- I know you’re not supposed to, technically, but who are we lying to? We all do it
- The site also falls off more easily than Dexcom and always requires tape to stay on, an optional feature of Dexcom
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