General Guidelines - Dexcom G5 MOBILE User Manual

D. Consider taking a small correction dose because your glucose is still trending up.
You know the insulin you took at dinner may not have fully kicked in, but your blood
glucose is continuing to climb.
If you chose "D", you are correct!
Your blood glucose is still climbing but you are taking only a small extra dose. You know your
pre-meal insulin dose is still working.
Let's take a look at why "D" was the best answer:
• "A" doesn't consider how long it takes insulin to work.
The insulin you took before your meal may continue to work for 3-4 hours.
So, taking a "full" extra dose of insulin, a short time after your meal insulin, is
"stacking" insulin, and could result in a low glucose. Talk to your HCP about the
dangers of stacking insulin.
• "B" may be a correct answer, as the insulin you took 2 hours ago is still working.
However, as your glucose is still rising, the dose you took may not have been
enough. Your HCP can help you decide when to take small correction insulin doses.
• "C" would be better if your glucose were going down rapidly, but since your glucose
is already high and rising, eating some fast-acting carbohydrates would not be the
right answer.

13.6 General Guidelines

During your daily life with diabetes, it is important to learn from your treatment decisions:
what worked (getting you back to your target glucose range) or what did not work (keeping
you from reaching your target glucose range). Think about why you were high or low.
For lows:
• Did you take too much insulin for a meal or snack?
• Did you take too much insulin to correct for a high glucose level?
• Did your exercise lower your glucose levels?
• Did you drink any alcohol?
• Did you accurately count carbohydrates?
• Did you take too much insulin in too close a time period?
Dexcom G5 Mobile System User Guide
Using the Dexcom G5 Mobile CGM System for Treatment Decisions
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