Review of Patch Bandages
So now that I've had them almost a week, I'm reviewing the patch bandage things that I bought off amazon as covers for my continuous glucose monitor on my arm. Mine is a Freestyle Libre 2 and does not come with covers like a Dexcom does. (I'll work on it, I don't know why my images are only showing up in photos, not in the post themselves. They do have ALT text, though.)
These, so far, do NOT last. The sensor is on your arm for 14 days before you replace it. This patch lasted 6 days, I just put a new one on. They come in white people flesh tone, baby crib pink, or the rainbow assorted pack I bought that includes the "skin" tone and black. I've used the two "skin" tone ones now.
First off, the backing is divided into thirds. Although the package markets these to the Freestyle Libre sensors, the backing is not cut with a circle in the middle of it, which is a pain in the butt. I took the recommendation of a lot of amazon reviewers and left the paper on in the center over the sensor to make it easier to remove. I'm glad I did, but being cut in a strip meant I had to measure the width of the sensor and cut the paper correctly, an extra step. It's not hard to position and put on, though, much like a fabric Band-Aid with peeling off one piece of paper at a time.
Over the 6 days, though, the edges started fraying about day 3 (I mainly wear tshirts and sweatshirts). Then it started peeling up on the upper edge, where it would rub against a shirt you're taking off over your head. I took it off today because half of it had literally no adhesive left and was flapping off. When I took it completely off, it wasn't even sticky anymore in that area.
So, while they're pretty colors, they don't stay stuck worth crap. I'll be looking at other brands and saving the rest of these for... I don't know, art projects? Emergency bandage covers? Vaguely absorbent coasters for a lukewarm can? *shrug* Not worth the money, in my opinion. Oh well.