Meet Dex

Going into London's endocrine appointment in March we had anxious expectations of getting an insulin pump. Though we had unanimously decided given the choice we would choose to go with a continuous glucose monitor or CGM for short. After researching and listening to what Dr. Nunez had to say we chose to start the process of getting a CGM. We felt like this device would be a jumping off point for a pump down the road. It will get her (and us) accustomed to something being attached to her body all the time without so much weighing on the touch of a button. For now we've decided to revisit the pump when she starts kindergarten when there is a Registered Nurse to help supervise.
 
So the thing with Type 1 Diabetes is its so unpredictable. There is a lot of time put into managing this disease. If any of you read the article I posted a few weeks ago entitled Staying Between the Lines this may make more sense to you. All day and all night you strive to keep the blood sugars just so. Kids are a lot harder to manage for a lot of reasons I won't get into now. As a parent you fear lows. You lay awake at night listening, wondering, checking, praying. You try not to think about the highs. Those sugar shards ravaging your child's tiny delicate vessels. Enter Dex.

In September 2013 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first CGM for use in pediatric patients as young as 2! The Dexcom G4 Platinum is the first such device. London has affectionately named the transmitter Dex and seems to have taken to naming the sensors after pets. Our first sensor was "Camo" after Uncle NayNay's dog and we currently have "Noby" after you guessed it Nairobi the cat. The sensor is changed every 7 days.

We are in. love. with. DEX! Dex does as his name implies-continuously monitors London's blood glucose via interstitial fluid with 88% accuracy. While we can't base treatment decisions on him we can follow the trends. What makes her spike? When does she need a snack? What kind of snack- carb or low carb? You see how it works. Yesterday we were at the mall walking around pre lunch. I looked at DEX and he showed 120 with two arrows pointed straight down. She'd been 195 not too long ago. So I reached in her snack bag and gave her some crackers and cheese while we continued to shop. She leveled out and crisis averted. Before DEX we would not have known. We could have checked but I'm sure we would have said 120 GREAT! Not knowing in a matter of minutes we could have a life threatening emergency on our hands. Or we would have treated with a fast acting carb and shot her sugar up to 400.

While DEX is not the end all be all he does have his drawbacks I am resting a little easier since we got him. The next big thing on the horizon is a docking device from the makers of DEX. The Dexcom Share is a dock for DEX. It is currently being reviewed by the FDA for approval. I've been told it could happen any day but then would need pediatric approval. This would allow us to monitor her blood sugars on up to 5 smart devices from ANY location (work, etc). Currently the data does not transmit so you have to be within 20 feet of her and use a baby monitor to hear the alerts at night. We're praying Dexcom SHARE will be a part of our lives in 2014!

Without further adieu meet our new friend DEX!

 Meet Dex (he's pink of course:)our CGM transmitter-371 and rising fast :( #postmealproblems

Meet Noby--our sensor  that takes blood sugar readings under her skin every 5 minutes

London showing off Noby