Types of Accu-Chek Meters

• Your doctor writes you a prescription for a glucose meter and for test strips. You discover that there are a number of meters on the market. Some are mini-meters that fit into your pocketbook, and some are all-in-one meters with attached lancet devices and preloaded test strips. The decisions are difficult, but if you choose the Accu-Chek brand, you narrow your choice to seven meters: the Accu-Chek Compact Plus, the Accu-Check Compact, the Accu-Chek Active, the Accu-Chek Aviva, the Accu-Chek Advantage, the Accu-Chek Complete, and the Accu-Chek Voicemate. Even though each one is different, the process of using the meters is similar.
  
  

Prepping to Use the Meter

• Regardless of which Accu-Chek meter you choose, prepping to use the meter is the same. Wash your hands with soap and water. Choose a finger for a blood sample. Swab the finger with an alcohol pad and let dry. Massage the finger. If you are using the Accu-Chek Compact Plus, you can either remove the lancet or leave it on the meter. All the lancet devices for Accu-Chek come with 11 settings. The lower you adjust the setting number, the less depth of the needle. Most people adjust the setting to three or four. Press the plunger to activate the lancet device. Hold the lancet device against the skin. Press and release the plunger. The lancet will prick the skin. Massage the area to form a blood droplet for testing.
  
  

Using the Meter

• If you are using the Accu-Chek Compact Plus or Compact, you need to insert the preloaded test drum. Turn off the meter and open the drum door. Press the red down-release button. Insert the new drum and snap the lid shut. The meter turns on. Push the test button and a strip will come out. Hold the meter against the blood droplet so the black notch can fill. If you have the meter set to beep, it will beep when enough blood is drawn into the test strip. The meter reading is available in five seconds.
  
  All other Accu-Chek meters are for single-loaded test strips. The strips are different for some meters, but the process is the same. Insert the strip into the meter. This turns the meter on. When the display shows a flashing droplet of blood, place the strip against the blood. The Accu-Chek Active meter strip has an orange dot into which the blood must enter. The Accu-Chek Aviva meter has a wide-mouth strip that draws blood from the tip of the strip. The Accu-Chek Advantage meter and the Accu-Chek Complete meter have a curved strip into which the blood enters. Wait five seconds and the results are displayed. When you take out the strip, the meter turns off.
  
  The Accu-Chek Voicemate is a single strip application. Insert the strip. Press the finger against the strip. When the blood is drawn onto the strip, the meter will say the results to you. The Accu-Chek Voicemate is for blind or visually impaired people.