Using Computers to Help With Control

posted 11/07/02

Today computers are used in many aspects of your life. But have you considered using one to help with your blood glucose control. There are over 70 programs available to help people monitor and track their blood glucose readings. This article will offer suggestion on monitoring software written for use with major blood glucose monitors sold in the United Sates.

Many of the newer blood glucose meters have the ability to store hundreds of blood glucose readings. While this feature may decrease the need to carry your log book everywhere, scrolling through all these numbers may not be an affective way to improve your diabetes care plan.

The right software program can help you and your healthcare team see patterns in your blood glucose levels by displaying the data in easy-to-understand graphs. If you use a program that uploads data from your meter to the computer, you may never have to write down your blood glucose numbers at all.

Your Needs

Before you select a software package, consider if you could use it and, more important, if you would use it. If you are satisfied with your current method of blood glucose monitoring and record-keeping, then you may not need a computer program that tracks and analyzes your blood glucose levels. However, it you want to better track and see your blood glucose trends in an easy to understand format, you may want to consider using a computer monitoring program.

Some of the major meter companies provide program monitoring systems for their meters. They are:

•  Abbott’s Precision Link
•  Bayer’s WinglucoFacts Pro
•  LifeScan’s In Touch
•  Roche’s Accu-Chek Compass
•  Therasens FreeStyle Connect

(See chart for more details.)

Important Items To Look For

o Can data be uploaded directly from your meter, or do you have to manually type in each reading? Direct upload usually only takes a few minutes, saves you from typing in the numbers, and help reduce errors that may occur when copying numbers by hand.

o Cost involved. Although most of the programs associated with the meter companies listed above are free, you will need to buy the cable that connects your glucose monitor to your computer ($20 and up). Ask the manufacture how the cable connects to your computer, and find out if your computer can support the connection before getting the program and purchasing the cable.

o Can the program print useful graphs and tables? If the program can only display one long table, you may have trouble determining the meaning. The most useful graphs are ones that allow you to show different graphs of the same data, such as all your pre-lunch readings for the past month.

o Make sure the program analyzes all the data you want to see. If you exercise regularly, you may want to input blood glucose before and after exercise. Some programs limits you to pre-meal and post-meal levels only. Plus, you may need to test more often when your sick. So, make sure the program does not limit the number of blood glucose readings per day.

Three Web sites do a good job of letting you manually input your blood glucose levels and then chart them. They are DiabetesResearch On-Line Glucose Monitor, MyDiabetes, and D-Net. But none of these Web programs let you upload your numbers as easily as you can to a program on your own computer. That would be ideal and several companies are currently working on it.

Meanwhile, think of these computer programs as extra resources available to help give you better control of your diabetes by tracking and charting your blood glucose trends. Just pick a program that works with your meter or switch to a meter than has a program you like.

Monitoring Software
This chart list some of the current monitoring software available for tracking blood glucose readings. Since software is constantly being updated, some of the items listed below may have changed.
Program, Operating System	Meter(s) Supported	Helpful Features
Bayer WinGlucoFacts Pro Windows (3.11/95/98)	Glucometer DEX and Elite XL	User can label individual meter readings as desired (for example, postexercise, premeal, etc.) Graphs subsets of data Abbott
Precision Link	Soft-Tac, Precision Xtra, Precision Q.I.D.	Allows manual data entry Easy to use software
LifeScan, In Touch Windows (95/98/NT/2000)	LifeScan One Touch Basic, FastTake, Profile, SureStep, and Ultra	Allows manual data entry Uses the meter’s annotated readings to indicate such things as exercise and illness; Allows user to add notes regarding readings Can produce graphs of both insulin doses and blood glucose levels Calculates blood glucose averages - within, above and below target range Flags hypoglycemic events Store and graphic HbA1c
Roche, Accu-Chek Compass	Accu-Chek Advantage, Complete, Active, and Compact	Allows manual data entry Easy-to-navigate Microsoft Windows platform Organizes all of your readings and identify any trends Provides 7 customized reports (e.g. Average Day, Trend Graph, and more) Electronic diary eliminates need for a logbook
Therasense FreeSyle Connect Windows (95/98/NT/2000)	FreeStyle	Graphs subsets of data Printable user manual available Allows multiple users for households with more than one person testing their blood glucose Provides 8 customized reports (e.g. 14-Day Summary, Line Graph, Average Reading Summary, and more)

Source:  Diabetes Digest.

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