So.... yeah. I wore my last Dexcom sensor for, I think, 17 days. It never "failed"! I thought it was great that it was lasting so long, so I didn't want to end the session early if I could get more time out of it.
Now that I've taken it off, the area where the wire was in my skin is red (doesn't surprise me), but also across from it is a giant red pimple looking thing. That skin had been under the sensor adhesive. I'm a little worried! I've never seen anything like this, and I don't know what would have caused it in such an isolated area. Seriously, it looks like a pimple, or a wart, or something. Ugh. Gross. Has this happened to anyone else?
I don't wear a dexcom, I've got the minimed version, but I've had that happen after wearing my sensor for 12-15 days I had little pimple like bumps under where the adhesive was. I asked a friend who is a dermatologist and he said it was irritation from soap residue and it should "dry up" and resolve on its own.
The soap residue thing does make sense. The red bump is still there, but not as big now... so I guess that's a good sign. I wonder if my stomach was a bad place for it to be... it gets wiggled around alot. I've got one on my love handle now, and it's sooo much more comfortable. I haven't even had to use tape on it... it's still sticking on its own after 6 days!
Its less of a function of the site of sensor than it is of the composition of tissue into which its inserted, the cleanliness/sterile approach to sensor insertion, and the body's immune response to the sensor (which is dependent on multiple factors). It could be an infection (though mild) or it could be your body's response to having a foreign object inserted for prolonged period of time. It should go away and is nothing to worry about if it is not painful.
I see your point Hayley, but the spot I'm concerned about is not the spot where the wire was inserted. The affected spot was only under adhesive. Now I'm wondering if that was a recent pump site I forgot about, that hadn't completely healed yet... hmm. This is possible.