Cat glucometer Question

[RustedFox]

Hey all,

Longtime SDN member that usually hangs in the residency/specialty forums. I was an SGU student and had a lot of buddies that were at the vet school there.

Fast question: is it feasible to use a human glucometer for our diabetic cat? Theoretically, glucose is glucose... but the way the reading is assayed or engineered could be far different.

Thanks in advance.

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[dyachei]

Hey all,

Longtime SDN member that usually hangs in the residency/specialty forums. I was an SGU student and had a lot of buddies that were at the vet school there.

Fast question: is it feasible to use a human glucometer for our diabetic cat? Theoretically, glucose is glucose... but the way the reading is assayed or engineered could be far different.

Thanks in advance.

yes, but there is usually a different code that needs to be input before it can read it

 

[Angelo84]

Short answer is yes. How accurate it is is questionable. It will also need more blood then the veterinary ones. There was a study in JAVMA. Looking at veterinary vs human glucometers it is august 2009. Sorry can't link on my phone. Chat with your vet about doing home glucose monitoring. They may have specific suggestions.

 

[david594]

http://www.alphatrakmeter.com/site-videos/use-species-specific-meter.html

Alpha trak is probably the most popular vet specific BG meter and that is their blurb on why you should use their meter. They cite the ratio's of intracellular vs extracellular glucose as being very different between animals and people as the reason you should use their meter.

Currently you can get it on amazon for $108 with the first 25 strips.