Hi CC,
I'm afraid some of the advice you've received above is misleading.
Hi, on Relion never give any insulin if under 180.
Firstly, the FDMB 'no-shoot' limit for cats with little data when starting Lantus is 200 on a human meter. This is a set value intended to keep cats safe and no conversion is applicable to it.
I note that your vet has given you guidance not to give insulin if BG is less than 200 on an Alphatrak meter. By virtue of the fact that Alphatrak meters read higher than human meters, it is possible that your vet might consider it acceptable to have a lower no-shoot limit for readings taken on a human meter. However, because there is no direct conversion from 200 (AT) to an equivalent value on a human meter and your vet hasn't yet defined a human meter no-shoot limit for you to use, I suggest you either:
(a) go back to your vet and agree with them to use a no-shoot limit of 200 on your human meter (per FDMB guidelines) while you gather more data on how Oliver responds to Lantus.
(b) agree with your vet an alternative no-shoot limit for use with your human meter.
Note that the advice to "never give any insulin if under 180" is incorrect for a Lantus cat. The FDMB 200 no-shoot limit is only applicable for Lantus cats starting out treatment on this insulin because there isn't sufficient data available to determine the pattern of the individual cat's style of response so a conservative approach to dosing is needed in the initial stages. As treatment continues and a larger mass of data is gathered it is possible - indeed, desirable - to give Lantus at progressively lower (safe) preshot levels in order to keep blood glucose in a better and better range as the process of regulation goes on.
[ETA]
NB: There is a notable exception to the guideline not to administer any insulin to a cat with a preshot BG less than 200 (human meter) who doesn't yet have much data, and that is where the cat is prone to producing ketones or recovering from DKA. In such circumstances a token dose may need to be administered to prevent the cat from progressing - or relapsing - into DKA. In such circumstances dosing guidance should be sought from the vet.
@Cat Caregiver -
Please note that the calculator at the above link is intended either for converting mg/dL values to mmol/L values or for conversion of readings from a human meter that only returns whole blood values into plasma-equivalent values. It is
not a tool for converting pet meter values into human meter values. For info, Relion Prime, Relion Premier and Alphatrak 2 meters are all calibrated to give plasma-equivalent readings.
Note that there is no simple mathematical formula for converting Alphatrak meter reading values to human meter values. Here is
reliable information for you (
originally posted by member Larry & Kitties):
There is really no way to convert a pet meter BG value to a human meter value.
The specs for both pet and human meters is +/- 20%.
Using a 100 point difference might be a OK for one BG value but as the BG value decreases the 100 point difference would be too great.
Because of the difference in glucose distribution in the different blood constituents,
The glucose is in both the serum and red-blood cells (RBC) themselves. However, the distribution of glucose is different between humans and cats (and dog too)1
In Humans 58% is in plasma/serum and 42% in RBCs
In cats 93% is in plasma/serum and 7% in RBCs
a % difference would be more appropriate. However, because of the +/- 20% accuracy there is realyy no good conversion method
Mogs
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