From:
Glenn Johnson
Date: 2001-03-16 10:30:00 UTC
Subject: Glucometers
"Home" glucometers are of two types, plasma calibrated and
whole blood calibrated. If yours is whole blood calibrated, it
will read about 12 percent higher than would the same sample
from your vet's inhouse machine. All home glucometers are
considered "accurate" if they read within + or - 20 percent of
the true value, meaning a true value of 70mg/dl could show
anything from 56 to 84mg/dl. Out of date test strips can also
cause faulty readings. IMHO, if you use a home glucometer (of
any brand), the best you can hope for is that it's consistent
and will show a trend over a period of time. The makers of
Therasense meters claim that a drop of blood the size of a
pinhead will provide a result.
Glenn and Chuki