Expiration-Newbie needing help!!

[KattyKay]

Hi, I am new to this forum, so I am sorry if this has already been answered. I was shocked at the price of Lantis, $274. Then, I was more surprised to hear from the pharmacist that it is only good for 28 days?! I am not sure that I will be able to afford this treatment option if that is the case. I am storing the vial in the fridge and using an alcohol wipe across the top before putting the needle in. Is it okay to continue to use the bottle past 28 days? There is enough insulin in there to last months. Thank you for your help!

 

[Glennie]

Hi, I am new to this forum, so I am sorry if this has already been answered. I was shocked at the price of Lantis, $274. Then, I was more surprised to hear from the pharmacist that it is only good for 28 days?! I am not sure that I will be able to afford this treatment option if that is the case. I am storing the vial in the fridge and using an alcohol wipe across the top before putting the needle in. Is it okay to continue to use the bottle past 28 days? There is enough insulin in there to last months. Thank you for your help!

Hi, KattyKay, and welcome. I know about Lantus sticker shock price. And then hearing it only lasts 28 days makes it even worse. You'll get more people chiming in about options available, but real quick (getting ready for an out of town trip) the Lantus vial will last a lot longer than 28 days if you keep it refrigerated (and you are). I started using my vial January 1o or 11, and it's still good. I've read about some people using a vial for up to 6 months. As suggested I put my vial on the top shelf in the back of my frig in a mug (with warnings to my family to not touch) and not in the door of the frig where it gets jiggled.

Right now if you google Lantus, they have a coupon available for only $10 for a single Lantus pen. You will have to find a pharmacy that is willing to break up a 5 pack of them, but some people are having success with that. (Not me, unfortunately). Maybe that will work for you. A caution about the pens though, you still have to use the same syringes as needed for the vials to inject your kitty, which is no problem, but just something to note.

Also there is a Canadian pharmacy, (Mark's Marine Pharmacy) that has reasonable prices on Lantus. Many people on here order through them. I just received my first order from them a few days ago. I bought my first vial of Lantus from Walmart, and then when the weather permitted, I ordered from Mark's. It's all too complicated for me to go into since my time is limited right now, but others can give you specific info. I mostly just wanted to let you know there are options to make this more doable and not to give up.

 

[Glennie]

If you add that you are new and have questions about Lantus in your title thread, I think you will get more responses and help.

 

[Sienne and Gabby (GA)]

I was using the Lantus pens so the amount in each pen is less than a vial. I could easily get 3 months worth of shots from a pen. (Of course, the size of the dose makes a difference.) The only time I had a problem is if I ran into a "bad" pen, which was very unusual. Most of us have been able to use a pen or vial until the last drop. People have used vials for around 6 months.

A lot of people prefer the pens. If you drop a vial, you have a broken vial and insulin all over the floor. The pens are encased in plastic so there's less likely to be breakage. In addition, while you can buy a single pen (although it can be hard to find a local place that will sell a single pen. Marks Marine will sell a single pen.), most of us buy them in a package of 5. If there's a problem with one pen, you have a back-up.

 

[KattyKay]

Thank you everyone for your replies! I really appreciate the help!

 

[Gussie's mom (GA)]

Hi
I used the vial and like Glennie posted, mine also lasted a long time past those 28 days, at least four months without losing any potency. I too was very careful in how I treated it. Didn't shake it, jostled it as little as possible, kept it in the fridge, never put excess insulin I drew up back into the vial and never reinserted a syringe needle..always put it right back into the fridge in its box after drawing before I did anything else...
Hope that helps..

 

[Glennie]

Thank you everyone for your replies! I really appreciate the help!

If you need more help, just keep asking questions. Also reading other's posts can be very helpful. There was an extensive conversation a few days ago about Mark's and Lantus purchases with lots of details on ordering and their policies, but I don't know how to get the condo over here. I am a techno dud...Also you can call Mark's if you decide to go that way. They are so helpful. And I still haven't packed....

 

[Ella & Rusty & Stu(GA)]

The "28 days" statement in the Lantus instructions is intended for humans, who generally have much larger doses than cats, and who carry an open pen around with them (the open pens are rated for 28 days without refrigeration). We use our Lantus (pen or vial) as long as we can. If it begins to seem to be no longer effective, even though it isn't totally empty, that is the time to start a new pen or vial. Keep it well protected in the 'fridge (I put my "working" pen into a small cardboard box to help protect it from fluctuations in temperature in the 'fridge. I try to keep the 'fridge between 36 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Good luck, and welcome!