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If you’re someone who uses a Continuous Glucose Monitor, there were some exciting updates shared last week at ATTD 2021 about Dexcom G7. We’ve pulled together the latest and most updated info to share with you. Unfortunately, there has been no launch date announced, but there are whispers that our US community may see approval in late 2021. We’ll be keeping an eye out for more news.

Are you totally new to Dexcom and Continuous Glucose Monotiring (CGM)? Check out our previous blogs here:

For now, here’s what you need to know about the Dexcom G7:

It looks different!

The Dexcom G7 will look much different from all of its predecessors with a totally new design. The fully-disposable system will come as an all-in-one transmitter and sensor. Once your sensor is ‘done’, peel it off and throw it out.

The transmitter portion is 60% smaller than the G6. We expect this will make pesky snags on doorways and who-knows-what-else far less common.

Shorter Warm-Up Period

The Dexcom G6 requires a 2-hour warm up period to acclimatize before you’ll start getting sensor readings. The reason for this is due to what has been called ‘insertion trauma’. When you insert a new sensor under your skin, your body reacts to this new foreign object with a small immune response. The body reacts with the chemical coating on the sensor filament working towards a sort of equilibrium. With the G6, a minimum of 2 hours was required before the sensor readings are deemed steady enough to provide readings, and even then, you may have noticed that your readings continue to be a bit wonky for up to 24 hours.

The Dexcom G7 will have an even shorter warm-up period: Just 30 minutes!

Reduced Packaging

When Dexcom G6 launched, one of the biggest things users noticed was how much more packaging and waster there seemed to be with a new large, disposable inserter included with every sensor. The Dexcom team has worked to remedy this with the G7, reducing the packaging for the product by 67%. The new applicator will be simple, redesigned and much smaller.

New Tech Features

We started to hear more about the possibility for direct to watch capabilities for Dexcom in 2019 when CEO Kevin Sayer teased a potential partnership between Apple and Dexcom. At ATTD, the Dexcom confirmed that the G7 should be ready with direct-to-watch capabilities at the time of its launch. This means that, if you have an Apple Watch, you will no longer need to carry your phone around. Instead, your CGM readings will be picked up directly by the watch itself. Great news for those who like to get out and moving and leave their phone behind!

In addition, the Dexocm G7 will have a Siri integration – a huge advancement for individuals with visual impairments. This integration should allow Dexcom readings to be read verbally from the iPhone instead of relying on vision.

Finally, we’ve heard that there will be totally overhaul of the app with totally customizable alerts and alarms. We’re looking forward to hearing more about this.

Increased Accuracy

Dexcom’s sensor accuracy has always been pretty top notch, but the G7 is even better. Accuracy of glucose monitoring sensors is measured using something called MARD, or Mean Absolute Relative Difference. This is the maximum total (absolute) difference between a sensor reading, for example, a BG finger poke result. The Dexcom G7’s MARD has been shown to be just 8.7%. For example, if your sensor reading is 8.0mmol/L, a finger poke result should be no more than 8.7mmol/L and no less than 7.3mmol/L.

For comparison the Dexcom G6’s MARD falls between 8.7%-9.4% depending on day of wear (with Day 2 being the most accurate), whereas the FreeStyle Libre 2 is 9.2%-9.7% depending on age and Guardian Sensor 3 ranges from 8.7% to 10.6% depending on the site you wear your sensor and the number of calibrations (with 4 calibrations per day leading to the greatest/lowest MARD.)

Cost

This is definitely something to keep an eye on. Dexcom has publicly shared that the manufacturing cost of the Dexcom G7 is less than its predecessors. This fact, along with the competition from Abbott’s cheaper FreeStyle Libre system and the growing Type 2 diabetes glucose sensor market will make for an interesting opportunity when it comes to G7 pricing. In order to stay competitive in the larger Type 2 market, the direct-to-consumer pricing will have to be decreased – something the community has been asking for for some time. Already we’ve seen a shift to direct-from-pharmacy purchasing options which should lower costs for people with diabetes. We’ll be following this closely.

Rumours of Extended Wear

At ATTD, the Dexcom team shared that the G7 will launch as a 10-day sensor, similar to the G6. We had really been looking forward to a longer-wear sensor and are keeping our ears to the ground about rumours that the wear will be increased after launch to 14 days. No official word from Dexcom on this piece.