Insulin glargine is often recommended by doctors to diabetic patients as a treatment option. Lantus is a brand under which this medicine is sold. There is no generic drug available. It is an injectable solution given to people who have Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Lantus is a prescription medicine. It is an injectable drug given to both adults and children to treat hyperglycaemia. However, the injection can be self-administered and one does not need a professional help for this. The injection is given under the skin. The doctor shows the patient how to take the injection.
The easiest way to administer this medicine is with the help of Lantus SoloStar pens. These are 3-milliliter (mL) single-use, prefilled injection pens. Also, available are 10-mL vials used for multiple-use with insulin syringes.
Benefits of using Lantus SoloStar
Lantus SoloStar can reduce the discomfort level associated with daily administration of the medicine considerably. The discomfort level reported by different people taking self-administering injections varies.
Since the needle is thin and a small one, patients report that it is a far more comfortable option to inject Lantus. Further, a large window with big numbers is given to choose the dose, making it easier for even the older people to use Lantus Solostar easily.
There is no room for confusion with the dial-in dose and the push button feature of the pen allows for simple and less painful administration of the medicine every time.
How to reduce discomfort?
Despite all its features, some patients may still feel discomfort while using Lantus SoloStar. However, there are certain reasons why they may feel discomfort.
One of the reasons could be using the same site for the injection. It is best to change the injection site every time one takes the medicine. Also, ensure the injection site is clean and dry.
Your healthcare provider will also tell you to rotate the injection site every time. This reduces the chances of getting Lipodystrophy condition with thickened or pitted skin. A patient can also get skin with lumps or localized cutaneous amyloidosis.
Further, one should avoid piercing the injection needle where the skin is scaly, hard, damaged, scarred, bruised, tender, and lumpy.
Bust the doubts
Any side effect or infection that may surface after one starts using Lantus SoloStar could be linked to some other cause.
Lantus SoloStar is a device for injecting Lantus and is meant to provide maximum comfort for people who need to inject the medicine everyday.
Here are a number of reasons to ensure the best out of your Lantus SoloStar:
- As mentioned above, not rotating the injection site can create a number of problems on the skin. Therefore, a bunch of issues can be avoided by taking the injection in a different place every time.
- The most important part of using Lantus SoloStar is using a needle only once. The needles have been provided for single use only and repeating the needle can lead to infection and other problems.
- Do not ever share your Lantus SoloStar on any other person. Each person should have separate devices used for administering injections or testing blood sugar. Sharing devices can lead to transmission of infections like Hepatitis B and other transmissible diseases.
Consult your doctor, if irritation and discomfort persists even after following all the rules of using the pen.