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2025-04-07

Welcome to News from Loop and Learn

Master Your DIY Closed-Loop Insulin Delivery System

Published on 7 April 2025.

In this edition:

Upcoming Zoom Sessions

All zoom sessions use the same Zoom link.

Loop and Learn: Informal Discussion (Open Mic) zoom meetings are scheduled on the second Thursday of each month.

Zoom Calendar

Zoom Sessions use this link:

Topic Recorded? Time Date
Loop and Learn: Informal Discussion
Open Mic		 no 18:00 UTC 10 April 2025
Insurance Roadblocks with George Huntley yes 8 PM EDT
Midnight UTC		 22 April 2025
23 April 2025

Time Zone Converter

Need help figuring out when an event happens in your time zone? Try the SavvyTime: UTC Converter.

iOS Version Update

iOS 18.4 has been tested and given the thumbs-up by our team.

  • This update turns on Automatic iOS updates;
    • once your update is complete, please disable Automatic Updates in iOS Settings/ General/ Software Update
    • change it to download only
    • You want to be awake and alert while your phone is updating so you make sure your diabetes apps start working promptly
  • Xcode 16.2 and Sonoma 14.6 OS are the required minimum versions
  • See Version Updates for more info

The PBM Problem - Insurance Roadblocks to Care

George Huntley is a founding member of the Diabetes Leadership Council (DLC), a 501(c) (3) organization, and currently serves as CEO of both the DLC and its affiliate, the Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC), a 501(c)(4) organization. He has lived with T1D since 1983 and has three other family members also living with T1D. A passionate advocate for people with diabetes, George is a past National Chair of the Board of the American Diabetes Association and currently serves as Treasurer of Children with Diabetes.

Join us on 22 April as George explains the role and evolution of the Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) and the impact of the PBM’s practices on patients. We'll explore the hidden drivers of drug prices, utilization management techniques that delay access to care, and other significant PBM market practices. Both commercial plans and the Medicare Part D model will be discussed. This session is specific to our US members, but all are welcome. It will be recorded.

Do, Don't and Other Tips

A User Recommends Browser Build

One of our Loopers enthusiastically recommended browser build in a recent FaceBook comment:

“I am so happy that I managed to browser build Loop and related apps! I’m so mind-free now! Xcode build was my first go but every time I had to check/ wait for updates (macOS , Xcode), dread that disk space wouldn’t suffice, my Mac mini would not get the latest updates and so on! Now I build Loop from an old laptop!!”

We agree.

Do Not Rely on Answers from AI

We’ve previously shared our concerns about relying on AI for settings decisions when looping—and we still stand by that. Now we need to add: please don’t use AI for building information either. It can lead to serious safety issues. We’re all eager for the day AI can safely lighten the looping load, and we’re watching its progress. But it’s not ready for this role. Your safety and the integrity of your OS- AID come first. For now, stick with trusted, human-verified resources.

Bluetooth Signal Loss in a Crowd

You may encounter signal loss, leading to a red loop. Two great pieces of advice from our experts on Facebook:

  1. Turn off WiFi on your phone. Bluetooth and WiFi use the same antenna and there’s going to be a lot of noise in that frequency band.
  2. You can solve this issue by putting the phone right next to the pod, then shielding it from the other side with something that blocks Bluetooth.
    • You can use bodies to sandwich the phone against the pod with a person on either side.
    • You might also be able to shield using a sheet of aluminium foil or a faraday bag

Is Your "Go Bag" Ready

What’s in your diabetes bag? Have you looked lately? This is a friendly reminder (from someone who knows how important it is) to check your or your kid’s diabetes bag on a regular basis and make sure everything you may need is in it!

A Look at LoopDocs

Getting a new phone? That can be exciting, but also a little nerve-wracking.

Take a moment to read up on what to do to keep on Looping in LoopDocs: New Phone Tips!

Trio is Not Looping

If your Trio app isn’t looping because you are missing glucose values:

  1. Open the History screen in the Trio app
  2. Tap the + on the top right to add a manual glucose value
  3. After adding a glucose reading, press and hold the loop indicator (to the right of BG on the main screen)

What helps:

  • Add 3 glucose values about 4–5 minutes apart within 20 minutes.

Note: If all 3 values are exactly the same, the algorithm might ignore them. This is because Trio looks for realistic changes in glucose, not repeated numbers.

News from ATTD

Several members of the Loop and Learn team, as well as others we all know from the community, attended the Advanced Technologies & Treatments for Diabetes (ATTD) conference in Amsterdam as #dedoc° voices recently. Thanks to Miroslava Calegari and Theresa Hastings for sharing these nuggets of information from the conference.

TING

A new blood glucose range was born at ATTD: “TING,” Time in Normoglycemia. It is suggested to use TING instead of TITR (Time in Tight Range) for Continuous Glucose Measurements. There is an ongoing discussion about whether TITR (70-140 mg/dl) will remain the standard or if we should move to 63 - 140 mg/dl, which got the majority vote, so far.

Journey Awards

It's always a joy to see people receiving their Journey Awards, beautiful mementos for anyone living with diabetes for 10, 25, 50 and 75 years. CWD assumed the honor and duty of awarding these treasures from Lilly Diabetes, who still funds them, starting a few years ago. CWD awarded over 1500 of them last year and about a dozen at ATTD 2025. If one of those big milestones is approaching for you or for a T1D you love, be sure to request your Journey Award!

CLOSE IT (fully closed-loop study)

Data from the CLOSE IT trial, which evaluated an open-source, fully closed-loop (FCL) insulin delivery system using the oref algorithm, were presented. The trial aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of a bolus-free, fully automated system. In the study, the FCL system was compared to a hybrid closed-loop (HCL) approach, both utilizing an Android- based artificial pancreas incorporating a Dexcom CGM and Ypsomed pump.

In the FCL arm, no manual boluses were administered unless CGM glucose exceeded 270 mg/dL for more than one hour. In contrast, the HCL arm required meal announcements and carbohydrate counting.

FCL was found to be non-inferior to HCL in achieving Time in Range (TIR: 70–180 mg/dL). Both groups experienced low rates of hypoglycemia (<70 mg/dL), with the FCL group benefiting from a significantly reduced bolus burden. Neither arm imposed dietary restrictions.

A heartfelt thank-you concluded the presentation, honoring David Burren, also known as Bionic Wookiee, for his pivotal contributions as a software engineer in the development of open-source diabetes technologies. His work continues to shape the future of automated insulin delivery.

Women's Health

Important information was shared about women’s issues, which we’ll expound on in an upcoming News From Loop and Learn Special Edition:

Can your menstrual cycle affect your insulin needs? Absolutely — and now, we have the data to back it up. Carson Wedding (University of Colorado Anschutz) shared powerful new insights into how different phases of the menstrual cycle impact glucose patterns in women with T1D — using an innovative method called BlockRQA.

An insightful poster explored the lived experiences of women with type 1 diabetes (T1D) navigating perimenopause and menopause — a topic that still lacks sufficient research and clinical guidance. The study revealed that 88% of participants reported that menopause had an impact on their diabetes management, with many experiencing increased insulin resistance, glycemic variability, and emotional distress.

Diabetes Data Rights Charter

Ten members of the diabetes community, including LnL’s Theresa Hastings, gathered to draft the first version of the Diabetes Data Rights Charter. They created and shared an informative poster and request feedback and contributions from the wider diabetes community. Please join the conversation and share your thoughts!

What is dedoc?

It’s a global network of diabetes advocates making sure the patient voice is heard where decisions are made. The dedoc° voices program gives people living with or loving people living with diabetes the chance to attend top conferences and speak up! Several of our most active members have been part of it — now it’s your turn. To apply to be a dedoc° voice, see dedoc.org/voices!

LoopFollow News

LoopFollow 2.3.0 has been released.

All LoopFollowers: check out the release history for full details of all recent updates.

Browser Builders: Automatic build and automatic certificate renewal have been added to LoopFollow!!

  1. Automatic certificate renewal requires the addition of an Action Variable:

  2. Manually sync your fork and run the action Build LoopFollow to make sure you're using all of the latest updates.

  3. After that, builds will be automatic on the Wednesday following the release of a LoopFollow update.