AN ENDOCRINE CLINIC'S PERSPECTIVE AND EXPERIENCE WITH THE ABBOTT FREESTYLE LIBRE CGM

On September 27, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the FreeStyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring System® (FSL FGM; Abbott, Chicago, IL)) for use by patients to self-monitor their own glucose levels without using blood samples to calibrate (1).With the advent of continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) in 1999 (3), patients with either type 1 or 2 diabetes mellitus (T1DM or T2DM) could monitor their glucose levels with minimally invasive sensors (4).Since their introduction, CGMs have improved in accuracy (4), and patients with T1DM using CGMs experience reduced time in hypoglycemia (5).For patients with T1DM, comparisons of the FSL and other blood glucose monitoring systems revealed that the 2 sensors had similar clinical utilities in measuring glucose control and variability (8).Furthermore, in populations where SMBG can be particularly burdensome, such as pediatric patients, the FSL has been shown to be a safe, accurate, and acceptable means of monitoring blood glucose levels (11).