Insulin out of the fridge

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Elenka_HM

Elenka_HM

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hello. I was told that once you take an insulin pen out of the fridge, you shouldn't use it for longer than 30 days. I have an unopened pen that I took on a trip because I wanted to have a spare one, and didn't need to use it. My nurse told me that if I carried it in an insulated bag with an ice pack and put it back in the fridge as soon as possible, it could be like I haven't take it out and use it past the 30 days. So I did that, but it was quite a few hours between fridges.

I am not so sure if it is a good idea to use this, but I don't want to throw away a full insulin pen (though safety is more important). How could I know if the insulin is still okay?
 
Elenka_HM said:
Hello. I was told that once you take an insulin pen out of the fridge, you shouldn't use it for longer than 30 days. I have an unopened pen that I took on a trip because I wanted to have a spare one, and didn't need to use it. My nurse told me that if I carried it in an insulated bag with an ice pack and put it back in the fridge as soon as possible, it could be like I haven't take it out and use it past the 30 days. So I did that, but it was quite a few hours between fridges.

I am not so sure if it is a good idea to use this, but I don't want to throw away a full insulin pen (though safety is more important). How could I know if the insulin is still okay?
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Like you, I hate the thought of wasting insulin. I've found the worst that’s happened when I’ve used a cartridge that’s been on holiday with me and been in and out of the fridge is that sometimes it’s seemed to lose its potency a bit (nothing drastic, like not working at all) towards the end of the time I'm actually using it. In which case I've just noticed my numbers up a bit, and have ditched the remains of it and started a fresh one just in case. Most of the time they’ve been absolutely fine, though.
 
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I use vials, but like Robin I sometimes find the insulin loses a bit of potency if it's been in and out of fridges. Nothing life threatening though. Try it and see.
 
Thank you both! I will try when I finish my current one in a few days, and just keep a closer look at my BGs.
 
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