Safe to switch insulin brands?

I have a call in to my vet, who will get back to me next week after her vacation. My diabetic cat is presently on ProZinc, .1 dosage (smallest) 2 x a day. She has been on it for 2 mo., since being diagnosed. My friend unfortunately just lost her diabetic elderly cat, and wants to give me an almost full bottle of Lantus (glargine rdna origin) insulin. OF COURSE, I am not switching insulin without full knowledge and consent of my vet, and still have a few months left in the bottle of ProZinc. Has anyone ever switched.....just want to know if it is even do-able, before I make the drive to my friends house to get the Lantus. Thank you!

 

Yes, very doable. But there are very different insulins - although each are long lasting and gentle. Go over to the Insulin Support group for Lantus: viewforum.php?f=9 and check out the stickies at the top of the page. There is great info on how Lantus works and the protocol for using it.

 

Lantus is somewhat fragile and has a short useful life after opening (mfg says discard 28 days after
opening).

If your friend has an un-opened 10ml vial (U-100 insulin), you can expect to use it for maybe a maximum of
3 months before it poops out. Opened vial is already on its 'use-by' timeline....which is short.

It has to have been handled correctly...refrigerated. No shaking or rolling. Never inject insulin back
into the vial...etc.

Most who do use Lantus here, purchase the pack of 5 3ml cartridges, and open one at a time, thus
not wasting so much.

If you are doing well on ProZinc, I would think twice about the 'free' Lantus.

Lantus works differently than the PZIs....you might want to pop over to the Lantus Insulin Support
Group and read some of the stickys at the top of the forum, to learn more about it.

One thing I have heard is that it is somewhat fussy about staying on a strict schedule of shots 12-hours apart.

You state .1 dosage now ...I assume you mean 1unit of insulin every 12 hours.
Are you using INSULIN syringes ? Insulin is measured in units. Please come back and tell us
what it says on your syringes (hopefully not TB syringes or anything other than Insulin syringes).

 

If if were one of my FDs, I'd prefer Lantus over ProZinc. We use Levemir a similar insulin for Tucker, he was on PZI a similar insulin to ProZinc and is much more comfortable now. We are using Lantus on a foster cat and she's doing great on it so far.

As others said, you handle the insulin differently, but it's worth learning.

 

Oh many of us here have switched insulins. My monster Moochie was on PZI Vet(IDEXX) from late November 2006 through July 2009. I switched her to Levemir last August. For us it has been wonderful. It was not difficult at all. It was a bit scary for me only because I was used to the PZI and a little scared of the longer lasting insulins like Lantus and Lev but I'm so happy that I made the change.

I was also very happy that my vet agreed to give me the Rx for Levemir. She wanted to give me a Lantus Rx but since Moochie had been on insulin for nearly three years I wanted to try Levemir. I am sure that I would have been happy with Lantus as well but on advice from others here I asked for Lev. The reason is that from much experience here, cats who are fairly new diabetics have reacted better to Lantus while cats who have been diabetic for longer seem to respond nicely to Levemir.

It really is not difficult to switch and if you do, you will get a lot of help here from others who have done the same. Of course you will also find a lot of help and support here if you decide to saty with the ProZinc.

 

Reply to type of syringes used....

Yes, I am using insulin syringes, which I got from the vet. I had stated .1 as dosage for insulin, but should have put 1 UNIT. I am using 29 gauge, extremely easy to use. Thanks for all the info....I am going to find out the use by dates on the bottle of Lantus.

 

It's not the use by date you need to know, rather when did your friend open the vial and start using it. That's the important date to know.

 

The date printed on any insulin bottle/cartridge/pen is date the UNOPENED bottle/pen/cartridge is good until. Once you open a bottle/pen/cartridge the clock starts ticking.

A 10 ml bottle of Lantus lasts maybe a month for diabetic cats. You don't know when the bottle will "poop out" unless you are hometesting and notice wonky bg numbers. Many people buy the Lantus cartridges or pens because it is more cost effective (comes in a pack of five so basically a 5 month supply) than spending $100+ for a new 10 ml bottle every single month.

Ask your friend when the bottle of Lantus was opened. If it was over a month ago, it's likely no longer good to use.

 

as to the "fragile" nature of lantus and it's shelf life once opened... lantus is not as fragile as once thought and were led to believe.
when the "handling" suggestions in the STICKY: LANTUS & LEVEMIR - INFO, PROPER HANDLING, & STORAGE are followed, an open vial/cartridge/pen of lantus has been known to last for six months.

PROPER HANDLING OF LANTUS and LEVEMIR

* Lantus and Levemir should be inspected visually prior to administration and should be used only if it appears clear and colorless.

* Never shake or roll your vial, cartridge, or pen.

* In-use and unopened Lantus and Levemir should be stored in the refrigerator between 36 to 46 degrees F (2 to 8 degrees C).
Be careful your refrigerator is not so cold that the insulin freezes. Do NOT use Lantus or Levemir if it has been frozen.

* Never reuse syringes. You'll run the risk of contaminating the whole vial/cartridge/pen.

* Do not inject air into vial and especially not cartridges or pens. Cartridges and pens are designed to work on a negative pressure principle.

* If you draw up too much insulin in the syringe... squirt excess either into the air dramatically like they do on TV or into a paper towel... anywhere but back into vial/cartridge/pen. There is a silicon coating inside the syringe. It can contaminate the insulin vial with silicon (this is probably what makes "floaties", it forms a white precipitate). Better to waste a drop than ruin whole vial, cartridge, or pen.

* Pre-filling Syringes with Lantus (see page 3) is NOT recommended.

* Lantus and Levemir should not be diluted or mixed with any other insulins or liquids.


HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOUR INSULIN IS NO LONGER GOOD?

* When you lose regulation for no reason.

* If you see any hint of "floaties"/"tiny particles"... discard the insulin.

* If insulin is cloudy or discolored, or if rubber stopper is cracked... replace insulin immediately.

* The manufacturer of Lantus recommends discarding the insulin after 28 days of use.
However, many Lantus users have been able to use a vial/cartridge/pen for as long as six months.

* The manufacturer of Levemir recommends discarding the insulin after 42 days of use.
Many Levemir users have been able to use a vial/pen for six months. However, many Levemir FlexPen users do toss the pen when the insulin gets down to about the "12" mark on the FlexPen.



hope this helps...