Alternative Site Testing - i-SENS CareSens N Owner's Booklet

Alternative Site Testing
What is AST(Alternative Site Testing)?
Usually, when someone tests their glucose, they take the blood
sample from the tip of the finger. However, since there are many
nerve endings distributed there, it is quite painful. When doing a
glucose test, using different parts of the body such as the arms,
palms, thighs, and calves can reduce the pain during testing.
This method of testing with different parts of the body is called

Alternative Site Testing.

While AST may reduce the pain during testing, it may not be
simple for everyone and the following precautions should be
observed during testing.
Alternative Sites for Testing
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Things to know when using AST
Please understand the following things before testing outside of
the fingertip (arms, palms, thighs, and calves).
The capillary blood of the fingertip shows the change in glucose
more rapidly than AST. Therefore, the test results from the
fingertip test and AST may differ. This is because things such as
lifestyle and ingested food have an effect on glucose levels.
Acceptable situations for AST
• Fasting period
• Before a meal
• Before sleeping
Situations requiring fingertip test
• When the glucose levels are rapidly increasing during the
two hours after a meal or exercise
• When sick or when glucose levels seem quite lower than
test value
• When hypoglycemia is not well recognized
• When insulin has the biggest effect
• 2 hours after an insulin injection
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