[joy52]

Hi, my name is Joy. My dr put me on the lantus solar star prefilled insulin pen at 20 units a day once a day, but I have no idea how long the pen lasts. I can not find an answer. My dr or nurse did not tell me any of this info and I could not get in touch with them today. Anybody know anything about this?

[Cormac_Doyle]

Originally Posted by joy52

Hi, my name is Joy. My dr put me on the lantus solar star prefilled insulin pen at 20 units a day once a day, but I have no idea how long the pen lasts. I can not find an answer. My dr or nurse did not tell me any of this info and I could not get in touch with them today. Anybody know anything about this?

There are 300 units in the pen ... using 20 units a day - the pen should last 15 days.

Typically, the pens are/can be bought in boxes of 5

A pen can safely be left in the fridge for at least 90-120 days (just check the expiry date on the packaging)

Do NOT freeze the pen - you will denature the insulin
Do NOT allow the pen to heat up above about 95 F (35 C) as this will dramatically reduce the lifespan ... so don't leave it in your car; and keep it in a cool pouch during the summer if you have to take it out of the house

[owlyn]

All the information you need is on the paper inside the box. You should not refridgerate an in-use pen. It is good for 28 days once opened. It should not be stored at a temperature >86 F. Keep unused ones in the box in the fridge.

[Hammer]

Like the others have said, store the unused pens in the refrigerator, and leave the pen you're using sit out at room temperature. Injecting cold insulin is painful.

Also, since you need to remove the air in the pen needle each time you inject, you're supposed to set the pen to 2 units and push the plunger. Doing this uses up 2 units every time you go to inject, so the pen, which is 300 units would last 13 days.

I am curious why you need to remove the air from the Lantus pen each time you go to use it, but not the Byetta pen. They both use the same pen needles, yet you don't need to remove the air from the Byetta pen each time you use it, just the first time you use it.