Which finger to use to measure blood sugar?

In the treatment of diabetes, blood sugar levels are like a weather vane. Although home blood glucose meters cannot completely replace the venous blood sugar measured in the hospital, they also reflect the condition and efficacy to a large extent. Therefore, accuracy is very important. To get accurate results, pay attention to the following:

 

1. Be sure to choose blood glucose test strips that match your blood glucose meter. It is best to use test strips produced by the original manufacturer.

 

2. It is recommended that patients use alcohol for disinfection. If iodine is used, the test results will be biased. When using alcohol for disinfection, you must wait until the alcohol has completely evaporated before testing. Otherwise, the alcohol will dilute the blood and the results will be inaccurate.

 

3. The blood collection sites should be rotated alternately, and do not prick the same place for a long time to avoid scar formation. It is best to take blood from both sides of the fingers, because it has rich blood vessels and less nerve endings, which not only results in less pain but also sufficient bleeding. When taking blood, do not squeeze too much to avoid extrusion of tissue fluid and mixing with blood, resulting in low blood glucose test values. In addition, if the temperature of the finger is too low, blood flow is poor, etc., it will also affect the measurement results.

 

4. Make sure to drop a sufficient amount of finger blood into the circular test hole of the test paper. If the amount of blood collected during the test is insufficient or excessive, it will affect the measurement results.

 

5. Some blood glucose meters are measured after blood is inserted into the blood glucose meter. If the time is extended or too short, the blood glucose value may be inaccurate, so more practice is required.

 

6. Once a blood collection needle is used, the needle tip will become blunter as the number of uses increases. In addition, germs can easily breed on used blood collection needles, which will directly harm your health. Therefore, after completing the blood glucose test, the used test strips and blood collection needles should be disposed of properly immediately.

 

7. Some blood glucose meters move the test strip during testing or move or tilt during testing, which will affect the test results. If the blood sugar measurement result is wrong, too high or too low, it will have serious consequences. Therefore, if the measured blood glucose value is abnormally high (higher than 16.7 mmol/L) or abnormally low (lower than 2.8 mmol/L), you must retest according to the correct method and then consult a doctor.

 

It needs to be emphasized that whether it is a home blood glucose meter or a hospital blood glucose measuring instrument, the measured value will not be the same every time. It should be said that a blood glucose meter with an error value within ±10% is very good. Generally, the error value is required to be within ±10%. More than ±20%.