Prepared by: Seth Marks and Amit Lahoti
Updated July 22, 2020
The FreeStyle Libre 2 is the second generation of Abbott Laboratories’ flash glucose monitoring system. It was approved by the FDA in June 2020, was previously approved in Europe, but is still awaiting approval in Canada. FDA approval includes use in children, age 4 years and older, as opposed to its approval of the original FreeStyle Libre device for adults only.
There are currently limited published data on the FreeStyle Libre 2. Enhancements in this new version include optional real time Bluetooth alarms for hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia, improved accuracy, and a minimally thinner sensor size. The optional alarms feature is predicted to be a welcomed addition by patients. The accuracy, as measured by mean absolute relative difference (MARD), is touted to be improved in this newer version but it should be noted that the original device was known to have significant patient-to-patient variability. As with the original version, the device is hoped to improve glycemic control, and decrease rates of diabetic ketoacidosis compared to capillary glucose monitoring. Issues with contact dermatitis noted with the original version may be lower now with the removal of a known allergen in the new device. Perhaps the benefit most widely observed in studies and attainable clinically with the original device, and therefore predictably also reproducible with this newer device, is an improvement in quality of life.
