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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / November 2007Lantus shelf life?
The vet just switched us from Vetsulin to Lantus and there is a warning on th Lantus box that once it's opened it's only good for 28 days. If that's so, that's gong to be damned expensive medicine. Ten cc (1,000 units) cost $90 and the cat only gets 60 units per month. So I'm supposed to discard 940 units, or is the short shelf life exaggerated? > The vet just switched us from Vetsulin to Lantus and there is a > warning on th Lantus box that once it's opened it's only good for 28 > days. If that's so, that's gong to be damned expensive medicine. Ten > cc (1,000 units) cost $90 and the cat only gets 60 units per month. So > I'm supposed to discard 940 units, or is the short shelf life > exaggerated? ---------- Richard, I'm really confused. When Alex was on Lantus last year, the expiration date was nearly a year away. I know I am not mistaken on this point because I had a long conversation with the veterinarian about it. She expressed that despite the fact that the expiration date was a year away, she had concerns that there was a gradual loss in potency over time. She advised me to phone the manufacturer and inquire about that. As it turns out, since Alex didn't need the Lantus after a few weeks, it was a moot point, and I never made the phone call. I did keep it refrigerated until the expiration (just in case I might end up needing it after all). I'm sure you know it needs to be refrigerated. If I were you, I would check to see if there is an expiration date. If your expiration is far away (as mine was), phone the manufacturer and see what they have to say. And please let us know? Best regards (and happily assuming that this means Ripley is coming home or is already home :-) ---Cindy S. >> The vet just switched us from Vetsulin to Lantus and there is a >> warning on th Lantus box that once it's opened it's only good for 28 [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >Richard, I'm really confused. When Alex was on Lantus last year, the >expiration date was nearly a year away. That's the unopened and refrigerated life. The data sheet that comes with it specifically says 28 days after opening. I have a call in to my vet to clarify. >Best regards (and happily assuming that this means Ripley is coming home or >is already home :-) He's home, but very tired. We are feeding him liquids with a syringe and he mostly just sleeps. (How, you might ask, is that different from normal?) I did find out that the vet will check his glucose on a walk-in basis for $20. Had I known that, I would've been taking him there on a regular basis instead of trying unsuccessfuly to do it at home. >>> The vet just switched us from Vetsulin to Lantus and there is a >>> warning on th Lantus box that once it's opened it's only good for 28 [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > That's the unopened and refrigerated life. The data sheet that comes > with it specifically says 28 days after opening. Oh...so, that's why the doctor was questioning the potency, and obviously I didn't read the label carefully. > I have a call in to my vet to clarify. Well, what you're saying makes sense. Fortunately or unfortunately, the Lantus insulin is packaged in a size sufficiently large that the humans who take it won't need to go to the pharmacy on a weekly basis. Of course, that doesn't help cat owners who only require a very small amount :-( There is a cat pharmacy in Texas that produced (according to my veterinarian's specs aluminum hydroxide capsules, size#4, specifically for Alex). You may be able to get Lantus insulin in smaller doses from them. Of course, it still won't be cheap, but it may be less than $90. If you want, I can e-mail you the name of the pharmacy and the phone number. >>Best regards (and happily assuming that this means Ripley is coming home >>or [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > for $20. Had I known that, I would've been taking him there on a > regular basis instead of trying unsuccessfuly to do it at home. That still sounds so expensive when you can do it at home for the cost of a test strip (around $1). May I ask how you are trying to do it? First, I rub a little vaseline on the back edge of Alex's ear. Fortunately, he has white fur, so it's easy to see the vein that goes around the edge of the ear. I use either a small gauge needle (given to me by the vet) or the little jabber device included with the glucometer kit to jab the ear near the vein (sometimes it takes a couple of tries). As soon as I see blood, I massage the ear a little bit and it beads up right away because of the vaseline. Then, I touched the test strip to it (which only requires a teeny sample - the amount could practically fit on the head of a pin), and voila, a reading! Have you been trying it this way? Best regards, ---Cindy S> >> That's the unopened and refrigerated life. The data sheet that comes >> with it specifically says 28 days after opening. > >Oh...so, that's why the doctor was questioning the potency, and obviously I >didn't read the label carefully. Don't feel bad. It's in very small type and you would've had to hunt for it. Were it not for a handwritten warning on the box, I never would have. >> I have a call in to my vet to clarify. > >Well, what you're saying makes sense. Fortunately or unfortunately, the >Lantus insulin is packaged in a size sufficiently large that the humans who >take it won't need to go to the pharmacy on a weekly basis. Of course, that >doesn't help cat owners who only require a very small amount :-( I found out the injector pen takes 300-unit cartridges, but based on my experience with my own insulin, the pen cartridges are far more expensive than the vials. Indeed, a quick Google search turned up pen cartridges for $126, compared to the $90 I paid for the 1,000-unit vial. >There is a cat pharmacy in Texas that produced (according to my >veterinarian's specs aluminum hydroxide capsules, size#4, specifically for >Alex). You may be able to get Lantus insulin in smaller doses from them. Of >course, it still won't be cheap, but it may be less than $90. If you want, I >can e-mail you the name of the pharmacy and the phone number. Thanks. I'll keep that in mind. >> I did find out that the vet will check his glucose on a walk-in basis >> for $20. Had I known that, I would've been taking him there on a >> regular basis instead of trying unsuccessfuly to do it at home. > >That still sounds so expensive when you can do it at home for the cost of a >test strip (around $1). May I ask how you are trying to do it? We were never able to detect the vein, but it turns out we were looking in the wrong place. And, of course, he wasn't very cooperative. We are going to give it another try. >>> That's the unopened and refrigerated life. The data sheet that comes >>> with it specifically says 28 days after opening. [quoted text clipped - 31 lines] > > Thanks. I'll keep that in mind. You can put it out of mind. I just phoned the pharmacy to refill Alex's aluminum hydroxide capsules. While I had the customer service representative on the phone, I inquired. They don't sell Lantus at the current time, although they did mention that they sell another type (IPZ?) which is beef and/or pork insulin. The guy said that they could probably order the Lantus from the manufacturer, but in all likelihood they would sell it in the same size and at the same $90 price as Rite Aid. Sorry. >>> I did find out that the vet will check his glucose on a walk-in basis >>> for $20. Had I known that, I would've been taking him there on a [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > looking in the wrong place. And, of course, he wasn't very > cooperative. We are going to give it another try. Yes, and please share with us how it works out. Unless Ripley has a major turnaround and gets very active (and then we would be doing a happy dance with you), it should be easy enough if one person kind of holds him and the other person gets the sample. I can get a sample on Alex all by myself, and I'm generally not so good at doing procedures on cats or giving them medicine. Then again, Alex does seem to be passive regarding swallowing medicine (even though he was never passive otherwise). I have had much more passive cats than Alex who have fought like the devil when it came to medicating them, so you never can tell how it will go. Good luck. Best regards, ---Cindy S. According to the Wal-Mart pharmacy, a 1,000-unit vial is $88, which is right about what I paid. Pen cartridges are five 100-unit cartridges (total of 500 units, half the amount in the larger vial) for $210. No economy there > According to the Wal-Mart pharmacy, a 1,000-unit vial is $88, which is > right about what I paid. Pen cartridges are five 100-unit cartridges > (total of 500 units, half the amount in the larger vial) for $210. > > No economy there ------- I guess Lantus is priced for human beings who have health insurance which covers the cost of prescriptions. Not for cats :-( Best regards, ---Cindy S.
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