Lantus in half units/Novorapid half units

[stoney]

Tried to find out if Lantus do half unit pens or cartridges, but it looks like they only do the Lantus Solostar pre-filled pens in single units. Does anyone know anything different :?:

Also going to get on script tomorrow 3ml Novorapid penfill cartridges, as James is experiencing a lot of lows at the moment, so hoping half units will do the trick. :wink:

 

[donnellysdogs]

Hi

Somebody else will come along with info on 1/2 unit pens, but I know from your other postings that you have had a real time of it recently, so just sending this post just as support and to say that having gone to a pump, it made me realise just what a difference 0.5 of a unit can make!!!! Hope somebody comes with info, but I am sure there is a pen that is called a junior pen, but not sure which insulin goes in it....

Best wishes ..Sha x

 

[annettekp]

We have a novopen junior for the levemir and a novopen 3 demi for the novorapid. Both do half units.

Annette

 

[sophsmam]

lantus doesnt come in half units unfortunately .

 

[iHs]

Help is at hand

Aventis as yet have not bought out a half unit pen but Lantus and Apidra cartridges can be put in a Lilly Humapen Luxura HD pen which is half unit. All anyone needs to do is attach a needle to the pen, take off its cover and then screw the pen together with the Aventis cartridges inside it. As the pen is screwed together, a small stream of insulin will shoot out through the needle. Once the pen is screwed together all that needs to be done then is do a prime and then you're away.

 

[sophsmam]

thats good to know i've asked the nurse a number of times and she always said there wasn't

 

[iHs]

Hi

The reason that I know about this is because a D consultant told me about it. At the time, I was using Lantus and had dreadful trouble with one of their Optipens. After receiving 3 replacements, I gave up and found out about the Owen Mumford Autopen 24 so used that instead. In the meantime, Aventis wrote to my consultant stating that I was letting my diabetes control slip and for him to urgently review me. I was of course hopping mad as it was the Optipen causing all the trouble and not me. It was then that the consultant pulled out a Lilly Humapen and told me that I could if I wanted to, use that with Lantus cartridges.

Best person to get a Lilly Humapen HD from is a GP on prescription. Don't bother with the DSN as all they will be willing to give you is a pen from the manufacturer of the insulin you are using.

 

[stoney]

Thanks All for the replies.

Is Lantus Solostar just a name. I did not think you could get Lantus cartridges cos we have a Novopen Junior and a Novopen 3 Penfill, would they fit in these. If the insulin is no different to the "Solostar" then I should be able to get that on script as well.

 

[iHs]

Hi

Lantus and Apidra come in packs of 5 x 3ml cartridges so you don't need to use a Solostar if you don't want to.

Unfortunately only Novo cartridges will fit in Novo pens. In the good 'ole days' you could put any 1.5ml cartridge you had into any insulin pen as the cartridges were all the same shape but then came along the 3ml cartridge and everything went downhill :cry: and insulin companies started to manufacture different shaped cartridges to go in their own insulin pens.

 

[stoney]

Thanks iHS

Do you think If I write my Dr. a letter asking for the Lilly Humapen HD and the Lantus cartridges as well as the Novorapid cartridges, he will let me have them without any question seeing as we are new to the MDI's and it's not what our DSN requested for us in the first place, or :idea: maybe I should make an appointment to see him.

 

[iHs]

I would make an appointment to see him if I were you. Half unit doses of insulin can really make a difference in someone's control. Print out a copy of this thread and show him. If he umms over it, then ask him to prescribe you Levemir instead and inject that once or twice a day or insist to DSN that as Lantus cannot be used in an Aventis pen that delivers in half units, then you want to be put forward for an insulin pump.

 

[copepod]

Humalin I (a longish acting insulin, although many people have 2 injections per day) can be given with Humapen Luxura - Humapen HD is dark green; Humapen is burgundy or champagne colour.