Pen refills without a pen?

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elizhope

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I was just looking at the box of the prescription of Lantus I got. (box of 5 clear tube things) . It says its refills for the opti-clik pen?? But I dont have a pen contraption thing... should I? Ive just been putting the needle into the rubber end to draw it out. And thinking about it, the little rubber thing is open to the elements.. is this contaminating my needle when I stick it in to fill the syringe?
 
those sound like the cartridges and they are fine. and you are using them correctly.

fwiw, i use the pens, which are similar as far as exposure and i store the one i'm using at the time without it's lid on, in a cup, on the top shelf of the fridge, and have never had a problem. you could always put it in a sealed dish or something when you set it in the fridge? maybe a rubbermaid container or something.
 
No, you are fine. You could store it in an empty pill bottle if you are worried about contamination. Plus that helps protect the cartridge if it is dropped. One suggestion to help protect it, is to put some cotton balls or other stuffing around the cartridge so it will fit snuggly in the bottle with the open end towards the top.
 
elizhope said:
I was just looking at the box of the prescription of Lantus I got. (box of 5 clear tube things) . It says its refills for the opti-clik pen?? But I dont have a pen contraption thing... should I? Ive just been putting the needle into the rubber end to draw it out. And thinking about it, the little rubber thing is open to the elements.. is this contaminating my needle when I stick it in to fill the syringe?
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You don't need the OptiClik pen for your cat. Only Human diabetics need to use it. Just use your insulin syringes to get the insulin out :smile:
 
I requested a pen at one of my own annual checkups. I just told the doctor that I had a diabetic cat and asked if he had a free sample Opti-Clik. And he did! It's not necessary to store the the cartridge in the pen, but if you have OCD tendencies, it might make you feel better. And the case does protect the open cartridge against fridge spills, etc.
 
Thanks! Just wanted to make sure I was using it right. Its too long to fit in a pill bottle. I just keep putting it back in the box, which is a pain. The cup thing is a good idea. I wish they had just given me the pen thing for storage purposes. Why sell me the refills without the pen? weird
 
I expect you purchased the cartridges from a pharmacy. The OptiClick pens are only available from a human doctor Diabetic Educator. What did your prescription say? You can cover the stopper end with one of the plastic cover that go over the plunger of BD syringes. That is what I use.

A cartridge is five inches long, that a big pill bottle.

elizhope said:
Thanks! Just wanted to make sure I was using it right. Its too long to fit in a pill bottle. I just keep putting it back in the box, which is a pain. The cup thing is a good idea. I wish they had just given me the pen thing for storage purposes. Why sell me the refills without the pen? weird
Click to expand...
 
Can someone take a peek at my spreadsheet and tell me if the numbers look right? Im new, so i dont know exactly what to expect, but It seems to be kinda off....
 
elizhope said:
Can someone take a peek at my spreadsheet and tell me if the numbers look right? Im new, so i dont know exactly what to expect, but It seems to be kinda off....
Click to expand...

Looks like the 1 unit dose just nees time to "settle" :smile: That usually take about a week.

If would be helpful to other FDMB if you could put the name of the insuiln in your SS :smile: That way whenever you post on the main Health board asking for eyes on your SS you're not asked over and over again what insulin you are using. Maybe rename it from"Garland Insulin : Numbers" to "Garland's numbers on Lantus".
 
Hiya, I had the same 'exposure' concern as you, though I am using a vial. My solution was an inverted pill bottle:

2mzjpm8.jpg


I tried putting it in a pill bottle and capping it, but then trying to get it out to pull a dose proved to be more of an 'exposure' issue than it was worth.

I'm sure for your pen cartridges you could do the same thing with a taller container and more rice. I'm using orzo because that's all I had.. but it's the same principle. It's not as finicky as cotton balls regarding placement and it will keep your insulin from wobbling so much everytime someone opens the fridge :P

Here's a closeup:

2hoy6iu.jpg


Regarding ss numbers, maybe someone on theLantus Board has more insight than me?

Best,
Sarah.
 
I store the cartridge in a small, fairly flat tupperware container.
I just put cotton balls along the bottom, put the cartridge in and put the lid on the container.
That way I'm not taking the whole box out of the fridge each time and it has some protection if I drop it while removing it from the fridge.
 
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