Dexcom Wrongful Death Lawsuit Alleges Continuous Glucose Monitor Failed

Man died while on life support after his Dexcom CGM showed normal glucose levels, even though testing later found his blood sugar was over 1,600 mg/dL.

A Tennessee woman has filed a lawsuit against the makers of the Dexcom continuous glucose monitor (CGM), indicating that after her husband had successfully managed his diabetes for more than 25 years using different devices, the Dexcom monitor failed to register life-threatening levels of hyperglycemia, which ultimately caused his death.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by Jennifer Wisdom-Schepers, individually and as the surviving spouse of Michael Schepers, in Tennessee Circuit Court late last month, naming Dexcom Inc. and Tandem Diabetes Care Inc. as defendants.

Dexcom continuous glucose monitors are systems that use small sensors placed under the skin to track glucose levels, which are then transmitted in real time to a smartphone or other device. CGMs are often preferred by individuals who are managing their diabetes, since they do not require finger pricks and allow for readings of normal, high or low glucose levels at all times.

In her lawsuit, Wisdom-Schepers indicates that her husband, Michael Schepers, upgraded his diabetes care to a Dexcom G7 CGM and Tandem T:slim X2 insulin pump in January 2024, after successfully managing his condition for more than 25 years without any hospitalizations.

The complaint emphasizes that Dexcom marketed the G7 system as “fingerstick-free,” which the plaintiff says led her husband to rely exclusively on the CGM for glucose readings without performing manual checks. According to the filing, Schepers trusted the manufacturers assurances of the device’s readings, which created a false sense of security that contributed directly to his failure to detect a rapidly worsening case of hyperglycemia.

On April 1, 2024, despite his blood glucose levels continuing to read at a normal level between 68 and 120 mg/dL on the CGM, Schepers began suffering gastrointestinal symptoms, the lawsuit notes.

Wisdom-Schepers says that the next day her husband went into cardiac arrest at home and was rushed to the Johnson City Medical Center Emergency Department in Tennessee, where doctors removed the Dexcom device and found his blood glucose level exceeded 600 mg/dL.

The complaint states that on April 3, 2024, Schepers died from cerebral edema that caused an anoxic brain injury while he was on life support. Wisdom-Schepers says external testing showed his glucose level had reached 1,651 mg/dL before his death, a fatal level of hyperglycemia capable of causing cardiac arrest and other life-threatening complications, including:

• Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)
• Hyperkalemia, or elevated potassium, which can cause cardiac arrest
• Acute kidney failure
• Lactic acidosis

“Dexcom and Tandem’s devices failed catastrophically, failing to alert Michael to the life-threatening glucose levels that led to his cardiac arrest.”

— Jennifer Wisdom-Schepers v. Dexcom Inc. and Tandem Diabetes Care Inc.

Wisdom-Schepers raises allegations of wrongful death, strict product liability: design defect, and failure to warn and misrepresentation against the defendants. She is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.

The case was recently removed by Dexcom to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee on November 11, for jurisdictional diversity.

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