Arm Blood Sampling (“Alternate Site”)
The arm has fewer nerve endings than the fingertip
so you may find that obtaining a blood sample from
the arm may be much less painful than using the
fingertip. The technique for arm sampling is different
from fingertip sampling. Also there are differences
between arm samples and fingertip samples that you
should understand.
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Important Information About Arm Testing
• Under certain conditions, blood glucose test results obtained
using samples taken from your arm may differ significantly from
fingertip samples.
• The conditions in which these differences are more likely to
occur are when your blood glucose is changing rapidly such as
following a meal, an insulin dose, or associated with
physical exercise.
• When blood glucose is changing rapidly, fingertip samples show
these changes more quickly than arm samples.
• When your blood glucose is falling, testing with a fingertip sample
may identify a hypoglycaemic (low blood sugar) level sooner than
a test with an arm sample.
• Use arm samples only for testing prior to, or more than two hours
after, meals, insulin doses, or physical exercise.
• Testing performed within two hours after meals, insulin doses, or
physical exercise, or whenever you feel that your glucose levels
may be changing rapidly, should be done from the fingertip.
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