Stephen D

(Continuous Glucose Monitoring System). I am type 1 for 43 years and was selected because of my "unusual" BG's. I believe the CGMS is in it's experimental stages, not on the market yet. A sensor is inserted much like a Minimed silouete infusion, has a wire to the recording unit (about the same size as a 508 pump) and It reads BG continously. I think it was 5 minute intervals. At this time it does not have a read out but can be downloaded via computer and prints out a timed graph. You still check your BG in the normal way, enter the reading into the unit for verification and on a paper the time of meals and carbs. The most interesting and useful information I got was the fact that when I go to sleep, My BG drops like a rock almost straight down below the ability of the CGMS to read.(40) Sometime after being that low causes the liver to send out an inhibitor that prevents insulin from working at all. (automatic self preservation?) This condition will last for many hours and there is nothing you can do about it. The result of course is a elevated BG, in the 300's next morning. In the old days the doctors would increase the long term insulin to combat this conditon. Of course it didn't help a bit, just made it worse. Now, if my BG is at 160 or lower I eat a "NiteBite" a slow release glucose bar. Since i started that my Bg's have been right on the money in the morning.
Anyone else get to try a CGMS?

goodbyegirl, I'm sorry, I said I was selected, but that was by my endocrinologist. I'm not sure how my medical group was selected to test these units,so I can't give any more information.

[This message has been edited by Stephen D (edited 06-09-2003).]