Ordering an InRatio2

[chaconne]

I am in the process of ordering an Inratio2. I have a good lab that is nearby and convenient. According to them, my INR has been stable for several months. My goal in getting a meter is to shadow the lab measurements until I get familiar with how it's done/how accurate the meter is. The lab does not support my idea to get a meter, but my cardio does and he has written me a formal letter that specifies his support.

That said, I have some questions:
1. Many sites specify they will only sell a meter to medical professionals. Is this typically enforced in any way?
2. One on the cheapest new meters I've found is from medsupplier.com. Anyone have experience with them? Their policy says no warranties. Would amazon or ebay be safer? I need a receipt to get reimbursed by my HCSA.
3. If I get a meter on my own, will I be able to get any tech support from Alere?
4. I got a box of test strips on Amazon. I'm assuming that the expiration date is the year/day (2013/09) just below the LOT number on the test strips?

Thanks for any answers/suggestions!

 

[newmitral]

Hi Chaconne,

Yes, the date just below the lot number is the expiration date for the strips.

I can't answer all your other questions, but I did buy a second Inratio-2 meter for myself on Ebay and over the past several months I have been testing with both the Ebay meter and my official meter from Alere. The Ebay meter has been tracking within a few tenths in INR to the Alere meter. Both agree within a few tenths of the lab draw tests I have made.
Because my original meter was from Alere, I received their in-home training session. While the testing is straightforward, there are a few tricks to help keep the results accurate, like don't squeeze the finger to get the drop of blood out, for example.
I think there are some videos on their website, or elsewhere on the web, that you can watch if need be. I doubt you will get any tech support from Alere if the meter did not come directly from them. That's part of their justification for their high ongoing home-test support price. My intention is to stop the official Alere program, return their meter, and use my own meter in conjunction with periodic lab-draws to assure myself that the meter remains accurate. My doctor is in agreement with my approach.

As long as your cardio is on-board with your approach you should be fine. If you do need to order from a place that only sells to medical professionals, perhaps his office will help you out and order it for you.

 

[chaconne]

Thanks for the response newmitral. Sounds like you and I have the same idea about how to do home monitoring. I ordered the meter yesterday and am looking forward to learning more about this process.

 

[CATDOG]

Hi Chaconne,
I'm in the same boat as you were a few days ago. I'm still deciding between inratio2 and CoaguCheck XS--I think those are the latest models--if not, somebody please correct me. Where did you order from and what price? (Probably should PM the answer.) Were you able to use insurance? I've called every medical supply store in my area and nobody knows what I'm talking about.
I'm leaning toward the Inratio2 because of the battery & adapter options, and the memory. Both have test strips that don't need refrigeration, I think, but I'm not sure which test strips would be less expensive. Also I'm not sure if the insurance company will let me have an option to choose. Neither my pcp nor my cardio have much experience with them, but both have said they would write an order. I do NOT want to use a 3rd party reporting system. My pcp wants to do ALL med adjustments. My cardio says I need to pay attention and keep track & learn myself because there is no way she will ALWAYS be available. (My thought is ditto.) Unfortunately both think I should not need to test more than once a month. My INR has been 1.0 to 5.8, currently running at 1.7 to 2.2, but she hasn't upped the dose a smitch which would make me feel more comfortable (family history of strokes and TIAs). I'm concerned that they might not order enough test strips to allow me to test weekly. So I suspect I might have to do some eBay purchases outside of insurance, but I wonder if I could still get them into my FSA ...which is the same co. as my insurance company.

I hope you like your new machine when it comes. Keep us posted on your first impressions and later experiences.
Catdog

 

[Protimenow]

Alere DOES provide support for meters that weren't bought directly from them. I bought my InRatio from a seller on eBay, and when I had questions about some results, they were happy to help. (I suspect that they don't want people saying that they had a problem because of an error made by an InRatio - even if they didn't sell the meter. I've found their phone support to be very good).

As for test frequency -- I fail to see any reason why a doctor wouldn't welcome weekly testing. EVEN if a person's INR is fairly consistent month to month, INRs aren't all that hard to change accidentally. Personally, I'm more comfortable testing weekly (and sometimes as much as two weeks apart). For the relatively low price of strips, it hardly makes sense to risk an event that may take place BETWEEN monthly tests.

I have my own meters. Personally, I trust the ProTime with the five channel cuvettes more than I do my InRatio or InRatio 2. However, most of the time the InRatio (and 2) seem to report a bit higher than the labs -- as long as my INR as reported by the InRatio is less than .5 or so above range, I'm not uncomfortable with the result.

Back to the question about support -- I would be surprised if Alere did NOT support a meter that you bought somewhere else.

One more thing -- it's probably a good idea to keep a record of tests, dosing, and things that may have impacted your INR. I've been keeping a spreadsheet since I started self testing nearly four years ago. It's a useful history - and invaluable for demonstrating to your MD that you're on top of your INR.

 

[chaconne]

OK, an update:

After trying to buy a meter on medsupply.com (for $660 including 50 strips), they sent me an email and said I had to supply a medical license. It just so happened that I had an appointment with my cardio the next day, so I asked him about it. He followed up and told me that he would not be able to pretend he bought the meter and give it to me for my use. He suggested I try to get a meter from the clinic. They have not been supportive of this for me, however.

The bottom line is that I decided to get a used one on Ebay for $350. This way I will test completely independent of my clinic, but may discuss it with my cardio since he is supportive of me doing my own testing. The meter is supposed to come Friday (2/22), and I plan to start testing weekly. It will be nice to finally be able to get some independent data in my INR history after more than a year on Warfarin.

Thanks for your input CATDOG and Protimenow.

 

[Protimenow]

Again, please remember to start an 'INR DIARY'. The record will help you to keep track of your values, dosages, and any events that may have an impact on your INR. Although I haven't used it to convince my M.D. that I'm on top of my INR, it's a great reference and can be useful if you ever HAVE TO prove that you're doing your tests regularly, and monitoring even more effectively than most clinics could.

I'm glad to learn that you just bought a meter. (I just bought 48 strips for my InRatio on eBay and got a great price for them)

 

[chaconne]

Protime

Yes, I've been doing the INR Diary with my Lab draws (an Excel Spreadsheet) since day 1 and will integrate the home testing into it.

Thanks for all the enlightening posts.