Dexcom G6- applicator wouldn’t remove and needle didn’t retract


It seems as though they are having quite a lot of issues lately and that is what is increasing call times and even their response rate. I called about two applicators that wouldn’t retract the needle when I tried to place a new one on my 9 year old last week and they said they would provide a box for me to ship them back in, but they didn’t… I don’t even want to call back right now, because I know so many others are having the same issue and they act like it’s barely happening. :rage::cry:

For me, Dexcom G6 has been really good. Only one sensor didn’t last the full 10 days, and that one lasted nine days. For the whole time I used G,5, all but two lasted seven days, and several lasted 14 with a restart.

As for call center, my wait time has been acceptable, even during the Medicare upgrade rush a few months ago.

I’ve had this happen twice. Once maybe 6 months ago and another time tonight. Tonight was after 2 weeks of lost connection and wasting sensors thanks to tech support who didn’t believe that that was a transmitter issue. So the wasted sensor added insult to injury. My skin just can’t take any more of this abuse! And the long wait times for help are ridiculous. I am feeling very frustrated; if I have one more issue I might just take a break from the CGM for a while because it’s more pain (literally) than it’s worth.

I just had a similar issue for the first time tonight. The applicator stayed attached to me after inserting, but it seemed like the needle retracted as it wasn’t painful.

I had a screwdriver next to me and used it to whack the applicator a few times. It came off. Seems like something just got stuck? I could have probably done this with any small hard object. If this happens to you, try hitting the applicator hard on the side with something a few times. It might save you some pain in pulling it off and reapplying a new one. I just started the session, so I can’t say for sure if the sensor will work normally, but it looks and feels normal so I have no reason to think it won’t.

Could you share if the sensor actually worked after the the whacking?

I’m looking forward to starting on the G6 - am in the upgrade process now to G6 with Tandem Control IQ - and am just wondering since there have been so many posts about G6 inserter issues: if the G5 inserter was working well (relatively speaking), why did they change it? I see the G6 transmitter has a slightly different profile but couldn’t they have simply adjusted a bit? Probably a rhetorical question but I though I’d throw it out…

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Just had my forth insertion failure. Each time this happens I get more anxious about pressing the orange button next time in case it happens again. I didn’t have any problems at all for the first year and now I have had four fails in the last few months. I have noticed that the adhesive on the sensors is a lot strong than it used to be, to the point where it removes a layer of skin when I take an old sensor off. Could the manufacturer have changed? Resulting in stronger adhesive but also more faulty applicators?

Hi @StephJIR. I’m going to be starting the G6 in a few weeks and am learning what I can ahead of time. If you don’t mind my asking, what happens when you try to insert, that’s causing problems? Thanks for sharing if you’re willing.

It’s a manufacturing defect that cannot be identified before using the inserter. Dexcom has already addressed the issue but there are still tens of thousands of bad inserters out in the wild, yet to be used.

Hey Jason, did Dexcom ever do a press release or anything? How do you know it was addressed? Just curious…thanks

I don’t know if they did a press release or not. Kevin Sayer has been on several podcasts the last few weeks, and has spoken about the problems with the G6 inserter. He directly stated, they are aware of the issue, have found the cause and fixed it.

Good to know! Thanks. Which podcasts?

The G5 inserter was manual; you press the plunger yourself and retract it yourself. Frankly, it was a bit traumatic. The G6 inserter is automatic - press a button and it does all the hard work for you. In theory, at least. When the new inserter works it’s fantastic - so fast and almost painless, but when it goes bad it goes REALLY bad.

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We had the sensor not release 10 days ago. It was extremely upsetting to me and my son. Especially with the idea of having to take him to the ER during the Coronavirus outbreak. We were on hold for half an hour, and as my husband held the applicator in place so the weight wouldn’t pull in my son’s arm, I found a YouTube video of a lady hitting it with the handle of a hairbrush, so I did the same thing and it released after a couple of whacks. Amazingly, the sensor worked well for almost the whole 10 days. They sent me 3 new sensors (we had 1 bleeder before the bad applicator). Afterwards, in one of the YouTube comments I read that there’s a little hole on the bottom of the applicator that releases the sensor in case it jams. You use the end of the orange G6 tab that you break off to push in the hole. I’ve never tried it myself, since we have only had one bad one and I didn’t see the comment until later. They really, really need to recall those lot numbers! Ours was 7266747. Manufactured 2020-12-19.

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Thank you for posting, especially that tip you found on YouTube about the hole to release it! You might start a thread pointing to the YouTube video, and titling it something like “How to release a stuck sensor” - to catch the eye.
Instructions may be hidden in the fine print but from the comments I’ve read people don’t seem to be aware of it. Thanks again!

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Oh man! we just had this happen to us for the first time. Not once but two applicators in a row. the sensor would not release from the applicator. Poor little guy got stuck twice and had them immediately taken off with fresh skin tac applied. Third one finally worked. Lot number for both are 7266736. I hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else.

My daughter just had the same thing happen, where the sensor did not detach from the applicator. She was complaining that it was very painful, so we just pulled it out. First time in 2 years of using the G6. However, as others have noted, we have really had some quality control problems with the G6 over the last 3 months. I feel like I have to call with every other sensor because it fails before the full 10 days is complete. I also wonder if something has changed with manufacturing. The sensor tonight was from Lot 7266730.

My husband has had the sensor stuck in his G6 applicator about 3 times and we finally figured out a way to make the G6 sensor applicator work (I think). Before pressing the orange button to release the G6 Sensor, you need to press hard with your thumb (on one side of the applicator) and press hard with your ring and middle finger ( on the other side of the applicagor) If you look at the picture above it is right about in the middle of the length of the applicator where the release of the sensor occurs. After you’ve cleaned the area where you want to place the G6 sensor with alcohol, Place the G6 sensor where you want it inserted. While holding the G6 sensor with your thumb and middle & ring finger, put pressure on each side of the G6 sensor applicator with your thumb on one side, and put pressure on the other side of the G6 sensor applicator with your ring & middle finger. The pressure points should be right about the middle of the length of each side of the applicator. While you are putting pressure on both sides of the G6 sensor applicator with your thumb and middle & ring finger, use your pointer finger of the other hand to press the orange button to release the sensor. When we did that the sensor was released ealily with no problems. Try it and let us know if it worked for you.

My husband has had the sensor stuck in his G6 applicator about 3 times and we finally figured out a way to make the G6 sensor applicator work (I think). Before pressing the orange button to release the G6 Sensor, you need to press hard with your thumb (on one side of the applicator) and press hard with your ring and middle finger ( on the other side of the applicagor) If you look at the picture above it is right about in the middle of the length of the applicator where the release of the sensor occurs. After you’ve cleaned the area where you want to place the G6 sensor with alcohol, Place the G6 sensor where you want it inserted. While holding the G6 sensor with your thumb and middle & ring finger, put pressure on each side of the G6 sensor applicator with your thumb on one side, and put pressure on the other side of the G6 sensor applicator with your ring & middle finger. The pressure points should be right about the middle of the length of each side of the applicator. While you are putting pressure on both sides of the G6 sensor applicator with your thumb and middle & ring finger, use your pointer finger of the other hand to press the orange button to release the sensor. When we did that the sensor was released ealily with no problems. Try it and let us know if it worked for you.
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