Lantus questions

[AlohaLu]

Hi all, I just started the Lantus pen. I can't find answers to some questions.
Why can't I keep opened pen in refer? I live in tropical climate and temps are often over 90c.
I will be traveling to Dubai soon where temps are in the 100's.
Are there any great cooling devices out there? I have tried gel and ice they don't last very long. Do any of you have ideas?
Lu

[Grunch]

You can keep it in the fridge, just make sure it doesn't freeze.

You can put it in the vegetables compartment where it's less cold.

[Subby]

Lu, I can think of three reasons why it might be suggested to keep Lantus out of the fridge.

One, is that it can sting if injected cold. If this doesn't occur, or if you don't mind, you can forget this one.

Two, changing the temperature of insulin quickly may degrade it. So if you are taking it out of the fridge into 100f heat, it warms up, then you put it back into the fridge, it cools down, I understand this to be a no no for the lifespan of the insulin. Stability is a key.

Three, the active ingredients in insulin are supposed to work better at room temperature. How true this is/how much of a difference, I cannot say - I did get the input from my pharmacist who I personally would tend to believe.

I tend to think the the issue of Lantus working better at room temperature is probably negated especially with long acting, it will surely warm up in the body quickly, with no real difference on timing. This is purely my speculation.

I used to keep and use Lantus in the fridge myself, it didn't sting and I didn't take it out for more than 20 seconds. I didn't get the need to throw it out after 30 days as I easily went through a vial before that: but this is something else to keep in mind. Some claim that they use Lantus or another insulin past their commonly 1 month shelf life when opened: I never really tested that myself.

So in the end, am I suggesting you keep your Lantus in the fridge? I have had problems with heat knocking out the action of insulin before, so in hot weather I did and probably would again. The choice is yours. Grunches fridge tips are valuable.

Look up Frio bags for wonderful, easy, long lasting cooling alternatives to ice and gel.

[AlohaLu]

I just heard from the makers of Lantus. Very nice.
After the pen is opened it could be contaminated in the refer due to the pressure in the pen, viles are OK.
Bubbles, any thing smaller than an eraser head are OK.
Super nice and helpful person who called me. WOW that's great!

[Subby]

I just heard from the makers of Lantus. Very nice.
After the pen is opened it could be contaminated in the refer due to the pressure in the pen, viles are OK.
Bubbles, any thing smaller than an eraser head are OK.
Super nice and helpful person who called me. WOW that's great!

Hi Lu, it's good that you got a call and a friendly manner. Was there an actual explanation as to why "the pressure in the pen" will lead to contamination? One an injection is taken, the pen nib should be removed, sealing the penfill once more. There should be no undue pressure in the cartridge at that point. I can't work out what they are getting at!

Bubbles the size of an eraser head? You mean like an eraser on the back of a pencil? That's huge, at a guess that could be 40 units or so that you might not get. You don't want anything more than the smallest "champagne bubbles" (like aeration, really) if anything at all, going into you. If you are getting bubbles you should be priming them out before injecting.

[jlaracuente]

I store my opened Lantus pen in the fridge but take it out in the early evening before the nighttime dosage. But I will check out that comment from the company rep about contamination. Never heard that before. :confused:

[owlyn]

Hi all, I just started the Lantus pen. I can't find answers to some questions.
Why can't I keep opened pen in refer? I live in tropical climate and temps are often over 90c.
I will be traveling to Dubai soon where temps are in the 100's.
Are there any great cooling devices out there? I have tried gel and ice they don't last very long. Do any of you have ideas?
Lu
The main reason to not store it in the fridge is stability. Frequent, extreme temperature changes weaken the insulin.

A great product for keeping your pens at proper temperature is the Frio pouch. Many of us use it (I was an early adopter). You soak it in water for a few minutes, and it keeps your insulin cool for days (but keep it out of a hot car and prolonged exposure to direct sun). Just Google for Frio Pouch to find a distributor in your country.

[lark 27]

For me injecting lantus out of the fridge definitely hurt, and I've never been afraid of needles or had problems injecting, but injecting cold lantus would cause a soreness in the area that would last for a couple minutes.

[jtausch]

Hi Lu, it's good that you got a call and a friendly manner. Was there an actual explanation as to why "the pressure in the pen" will lead to contamination? One an injection is taken, the pen nib should be removed, sealing the penfill once more. There should be no undue pressure in the cartridge at that point. I can't work out what they are getting at!

Bubbles the size of an eraser head? You mean like an eraser on the back of a pencil? That's huge, at a guess that could be 40 units or so that you might not get. You don't want anything more than the smallest "champagne bubbles" (like aeration, really) if anything at all, going into you. If you are getting bubbles you should be priming them out before injecting.

Read on another sit its the bacteria that's in the fridge can infiltrate thru the pens stopper and contaminate the insulin, just what i read about the same type of question.

[Christina17]

I just got back from St. Lucia....I put my insulin (Lantus & Apidra) in a small insulated bag with a freezer pack and insulated the pens with a dish towel so they didn't freeze. Once on the plane the flight attendant was happy to put my insulin in the planes "chiller" for the duration of the flight so that it would remain cold but not freeze. Then I ensured that the hotel had a well working mini fridge and air conditioning and kept my open insulins pens in the a/c and just returned to my room for my shots instead of carrying the pens around in tropical weather. I also noticed that the stress of travelling made my BS a bit out of whack and higher and was thankful I brought extra pens as I had to increase my units while travelling..hope this helps a bit! enjoy your trip!