Lantus

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CALSHOT

CALSHOT

Active Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hello... does anyone use Lantus and if so any side effects to date?
I've been using it for roughly 6 yrs and have recently made my evening jabs earlier from 2200 to 1800ish. This was advised by the hospital as i mentioned my blood sugar goes above 12 around 0500... that naturally wakes me up and i use some novorapid to reduce it. At one point i experimented with reducing/stopping carbs in the evening but to no effect. The hospital told me to bring my jab earlier and give more doseage... but with more doseage i become too low through the day and have to force fodder to mantain a good level. Wanting to be a healthy weight and already being above the recommended i'm not keen on this approach.
Anyone had similar issues? this is effecting my sleep and making me drowsy through the day... starting to think Lantus might be making me drowsy and not the lack of sleep.
thanks!
 
Hi Calshot....

Nathan my 14yr old son, uses Latnus and has done for approx the last 14mths..He has experienced some problems and I have some serious concerns regarding Lantus at the moment....I'm in the process of addressing these with the DSN.

Heidi
xx🙂
 
hi

I'm having a few strange issues with my lantus at the moment too,

I was taking 18 units before bed at whatever time i went to bed and had been fine on it for maybe 8 years or so (cant remember exact timescales ha!) but a few months ago I started going incredibly low and waking up at about 2.something. And was running low all day

I spoke to my DSN a few weeks ago and she suggested lowering it substantially. I'm currenytly taking 14 units. And am waking up at 8 or 9, which to me is a bit too high.

I can't seem to get that happy medium which is wierd because I was fine before. I wonder if there are any alternatives to lantus?
 
A lot of people have problems with lantus, particularly since it doesn't last for 24 hours in many people, as claimed.

A move to levemir and/or splitting the dose usually helps no end.
 
I have been on lantus since diagnosis just over a year ago. Initially I had problems with it 'peaking' and also not lasting the full 24 hours, but after working on it and adjusting my doses I am now pretty steady and have no problems.
 
i am finding that i am waking up high at the moment...usually above 10.

i've been on it for nearly 3 years now. when i did the DAFNE course i got down to using about 20u per night (i take it between 10 and 11pm). i'm currently at 24.

i have a hosp appt next month, but wanted your opinions too...if i were to split it, what's the best way to go about it? 50/50, am/pm? or more in the morning and less at night?
 
I think I must be quite lucky as I've, to date, never had any issues with lantus, I don't seem to experience any peak to speak of and I don't seem to have the problem of it not lasting the full 24 hours, if anything I suspect it hangs around in me longer (based on the fact that the two instances when I've managed to forget to take it I've not experienced my blood sugars really rising until the following afternoon!)

Sounds like splitting the dose may be worthwhile looking at....
 
shiv said:
i am finding that i am waking up high at the moment...usually above 10.

i've been on it for nearly 3 years now. when i did the DAFNE course i got down to using about 20u per night (i take it between 10 and 11pm). i'm currently at 24.

i have a hosp appt next month, but wanted your opinions too...if i were to split it, what's the best way to go about it? 50/50, am/pm? or more in the morning and less at night?
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hello again ... i've mentioned this to my consultant around 2 mths ago.. the lack of sleep from having highs being my concern. I used to be on mixtard 30/70 and actrapid quite a few years ago. Whilst i used these my control was vgood, then i got talked into Lantus. My avg levels are still vgood but at the cost of waking up in the middle of the night to jab, this being the only time my sugars are high. My consultant recommended actrapid as a trial before bed along with Lantus and gave me a prescription slip. The idea being the Actrapid would last longer than Novo and help reduce the middle of night sugar increase. On going to the pharmacy they said it's no longer made.. so i'm a bit stuck now.. at present i go to bed with sugars of 3 (purposely) and wake around 0500 with sugars above 12... through the day my sugars are no higher than 5 so i'd prefer not to take anymore lantus... might see what the levemir is about mentioned earlier... let me know how it goes ... thanks!
 
CALSHOT said:


hello again ... i've mentioned this to my consultant around 2 mths ago.. the lack of sleep from having highs being my concern. I used to be on mixtard 30/70 and actrapid quite a few years ago. Whilst i used these my control was vgood, then i got talked into Lantus. My avg levels are still vgood but at the cost of waking up in the middle of the night to jab, this being the only time my sugars are high. My consultant recommended actrapid as a trial before bed along with Lantus and gave me a prescription slip. The idea being the Actrapid would last longer than Novo and help reduce the middle of night sugar increase. On going to the pharmacy they said it's no longer made.. so i'm a bit stuck now.. at present i go to bed with sugars of 3 (purposely) and wake around 0500 with sugars above 12... through the day my sugars are no higher than 5 so i'd prefer not to take anymore lantus... might see what the levemir is about mentioned earlier... let me know how it goes ... thanks!
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i was on mixtard 30/70 too before i started MDI. back in the day i was on humilin 3, or whatever it was called!
 
shiv said:
i was on mixtard 30/70 too before i started MDI. back in the day i was on humilin 3, or whatever it was called!
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ahhh mixtard 30/70 i remember those days. 2 injections a day and that was that.

aaaaaaaah memories!
 
Hi Calshot, if you're going to bed on 3 then that's a hypo straightaway - do you snack to counter it at all? Have you considered that you might be 'rebounding' - i.e. dropping even lower and prompting your liver to kick out some glucose, and that is why you are high at 5 am? Goodness, I wouldn't dare go to bed on a level below 5!😱
 
Northerner said:
Hi Calshot, if you're going to bed on 3 then that's a hypo straightaway - do you snack to counter it at all? Have you considered that you might be 'rebounding' - i.e. dropping even lower and prompting your liver to kick out some glucose, and that is why you are high at 5 am? Goodness, I wouldn't dare go to bed on a level below 5!😱
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Hmm I agree 😱 below 5 no way , certainly not already hypo , you must be dropping lower then having a glucose dump . you would be better in the long term to go to bed a little higer and avoid the high and low effect which is worse for you than a couple of extra units of Basal !
 
Hi Calshot,

Could it be that your possibly suffering from dawn phenomenon? This is where the body produces a bunch of hormones to get you up and ready for the day, and one of the effects of this can be that your blood sugars rise.

I mentioned on the other basal thread that I have a similar problem with waking up high, and my DSN has me taking 2 units of levemir before bed (on top of my lantus in the morning). I must admit I was a little skeptical, but it's worked a treat! I've also heard of people taking a couple of units of insulatard before bed for the same reason, which is an older basal insulin with a peak of around 6-8 hours. It would do what the consultant was hoping the actrapid would do, and it's definitely still available. 🙂
 
shiv said:
i was on mixtard 30/70 too before i started MDI. back in the day i was on humilin 3, or whatever it was called!
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Hi Shiv,
From your earlier post i'd never even thought about breaking up the jab. Though my control through the day is fine so probably not for me. Thought i'd go to bed last night and aimed for sugars of 6 rather than the usual 3 following readin the other posts about dawn phenomenon (thx for that). I still woke and my sugars were at 16 but i'll try for a few more nights just incase.
I haven't heard of Levemir before.. is it basal? how does it compare to lantus on timings?
many thanks.
 
CALSHOT said:


Hi Shiv,
From your earlier post i'd never even thought about breaking up the jab. Though my control through the day is fine so probably not for me. Thought i'd go to bed last night and aimed for sugars of 6 rather than the usual 3 following readin the other posts about dawn phenomenon (thx for that). I still woke and my sugars were at 16 but i'll try for a few more nights just incase.
I haven't heard of Levemir before.. is it basal? how does it compare to lantus on timings?
many thanks.
Click to expand...

Hi Levemir is Basal and is used as a different option to Lantus , Timing wise I have personally found that is doesnt last the full 24 hours and ran out after about 18 hours , I now have a split dose in the morning and evening and have had no problems.
 
CALSHOT said:


Hi Shiv,
From your earlier post i'd never even thought about breaking up the jab. Though my control through the day is fine so probably not for me. Thought i'd go to bed last night and aimed for sugars of 6 rather than the usual 3 following readin the other posts about dawn phenomenon (thx for that). I still woke and my sugars were at 16 but i'll try for a few more nights just incase.
I haven't heard of Levemir before.. is it basal? how does it compare to lantus on timings?
many thanks.
Click to expand...

It might be worth you asking your dsn if you can have access to a continuous glucose monitor for a few days, it may be able to shed some light on the confusing readings.
 
Hi All...

Following on here from my concerns over Nathan been on Lantus...I have again spoken to the DSN today..regarding Nathan been changed on to Pork insulin..as a basal insulin.....We are going to discuss this at the next hospital appointment...with Nathan's consultant.....She did tell me though pork insulin was no longer being manufactured...I replied...NovaNordisk are the only ones who are no longer doing it....She then changed her mind and well some companies do still manufacutre pork/beef insulin

Heidi
xx🙂
 
Interested as to why you want Nathan on pork insulin Heidi? Has he tried any of the human basal insulins like insultard?
 
sofaraway said:
Interested as to why you want Nathan on pork insulin Heidi? Has he tried any of the human basal insulins like insultard?
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Hi Nikki...

When Nathan was first diagnosed he was on Levemir...initially it worked well and gave good results..however about 14 or so months in...no amount of Levemir and N/R could control his BG....He would wake up in the teen's and little change through out the day..So the decision was made to change to Lantus...Now up until about the 10 mth in mark I could'nt fault its results etc...But problems started at this point, pains in joints..which I put down to growing pains..total loss of hypo awareness..increased weight and appetite..Which is unfortunately a side effect form insulin...and a few other little issues....Before joining the forum..I did a little bit of back ground research on Lantus..and was alarmed at some of my findings...especially from the USA side....I knew of the potential increased risk of cancer..granted more research need to be done on this to find a conclusive link..However my own feeling/opinion is any potential risk is too much..admittedly I am seeing this from a parents perspective..but I dont feel comfortable for Nathan using it for the next however number of years only to find out that htere is a definate link.

As regards to Nathan potentially having pork insulin...I feel it is much more natural to have an insulin that is a: from another warm blooded creature, b: genetically it is one of the closest match to our own

Nathan has'nt tried Insultard..So that is something for me to look into and approach with Nathan, DSN and consultant....

Heidi
xx🙂
 
Thanks for the explanation Heidi.

I think the problems with lantus have been discussed here before a few times. I have some issues with it but find that it does infact give me pretty good control, so its all about weighing things up. And if Nathan is having significant problems which it sounds like he is then I think it's right to look into the possible alternatives.

I assume you've checked out this website http://www.iddtinternational.org/ but for anyone else they promote choice for patients and campaign for animal insulins to remain avaliable.

Have these symptoms been investigated in their own right? Or has the assumption been that it is related to the lantus? Hope that you can find something that suits and works for Nathan.
 
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