Is your provider giving you pre-drawn insulin syringes? It is important to take caution with any company that provides “pre-drawn” insulin syringes to patients.
The CDC advises against pre-filling insulin syringes with weight loss medication, since it can lead to an array of problems with sterility, effectiveness, and accurate dosage. According to US Pharmacopeia, if for some reason you must pre-fill a syringe, you should utilize the medication within a maximum of 4 hours.
There are syringes designed for safe medication storage and are classified as pre-filled syringes/pens. However, the orange capped insulin syringes aren’t designed or intended to pre-fill medications (let alone ship) and create a high risk to patients for microbial infections. An insulin syringe should not be used to store medication. Therefore, while pre-filled pens are typically safe, an insulin syringe that someone filled with medication and gave to you is not. In addition to the risk of microbial infections is the efficacy of the medication. A prefilled syringe/pen has been designed to safely store certain medications and maintain efficacy. An insulin syringe has not and, in fact, the opposite is true. The medication will begin losing efficacy within 4 hours of being put into this type of syringe.
Additionally, a multi dose vial intended for single person use is not intended or permitted to be used for multiple patients, again, increasing significant risks to patients for microbial infections.
According to the American Pharmaceutical Review, pre-filled syringes must be prepared in the following manner: "It must be filled aseptically in a sterile clean room with Grade A or ISO 5 laminar flow environments to prevent contamination. This is typically done with specialized filling machines designed to control pressure and temperature. Filling is typically done in batches and must be strictly monitored to ensure accuracy."
Indiana Mobile IV takes patient safety seriously and will work to educate all patients on the necessary steps to administer and store weight loss medication properly.
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