No longer able to access 5th/bonus mounjaro dose

[oceangreeneyes]

For the past few pens I've not been able to access the 5th dose. Is it me or have the mechanics of the pens changed so you can't do this. If you turn too far it just breaks it. I thought with the first 2 pens it could be coincidence but it's happened again with a third pen. Very frustrating.

Just buy insulin syringes and access it that way. I've never been able to twist the pen to get the fifth dose. Not sure if it's the pen or me that's the issue.

Yes this has been the case for a while and lots of posts on here about it. People use syringes to draw down instead

What is this elusive 5th dose?
I'm on MJ and I've never heard of it.
Plus, mine jams after 4th dose.
How does an insulin pen help?
👀👀👀

My last few pens have been the same, you need to buy syringes to extract/inject now. Buy from a UK medical supplier, not Amazon.

You used to be able to force the pen and it would work. Now you can force it but the plunger doesn’t move so when you press down nothing happens.

So you buy new insulin needles from Amazon or somewhere, take the needle off the Mounjaro pen and stick the new needle into the silicone to draw out that final dose into the new needle and inject that way.

Either sterile insulin syringes - poke the needle through the red bit and draw out the liquid (0.6ml is a full dose of whatever strength that pen is).

Or, there's a few kinds of '5th dose plungers' too, circulating the internet, which involve breaking open the pen, in different ways (some have a way of measuring the dose, others don't).

Buy insulin needles (preferably not from Amazon as they are not sterile)
Use the needle to draw out the remaining liquid

I have been doing this since I started a year ago - means you can get 5 doses out of a pen.

It is a business at the end of the day, and a very lucrative one, not a charity - they want you ordering every 4 weeks, not 5.

Would anyone mind linking to the sterile needles for the 5th dose?

You can twist the back off the pen and press the plunger with a stick. There's a video on Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/MenOnThePen/comments/1ilj2ci/the_disposal_of_leftover_liquid_from_the_kwikpen/

There is no way to accurately measure the medication or dose using a stick or other type of plunger. Human grade syringes are much safer and easier to use.

https://ukmedi.co.uk/products/fms-micro-syringe-32g-8mm-1ml-fms-fms-32g-10ml-ukmedi-co-uk

Remember when you draw out the final dose.. change the needle on the syringe.. don't inject with the one you have inserted through the rubber end.. you could get infection.

I use a pliers to turn it and it works.

😮 wow I don't do this! I never even thought to 🤦🏻‍♀️

You don’t have to if you used an alcohol wipe to clean the pen first

I can still get my 5th dose using pliers to turn the bottom. Did it last week.

Me too

Can you explain this to me like I'm a child? I'd like to do it but can't figure out what you mean?

The glass part of the syringe driver has effectively 5 x 0.6ml in it. After 4 times of administering your dose over a 4 week period, it is designed to stop turning after the 4th dose. However if you look there is liquid remaining in the pen. This is is the elusive ‘5th’ dose. If you turn the pen as usual you will find resistance after a few clicks. You have to turn with quite some force until it breaks past the barrier stopping it from turning and it’ll let you dial up the 5th dose. Sometimes the driver breaks altogether and won’t plunge downwards. This happened to me with the pen before last so I purchased some of the 1ml micro syringes and boiled one, before use, to ensure it was sterile. The last pen worked though and I got the full dose. It’s just down to how the force is applied I think. I’m going to try the pliers next time I think! I’ve been using mounjaro for 9 months now so I’ve done this quite a few times.

@MsPug you don't need to change any needles at all! Just clean the bung as you would normally and use a syringe to extract. The chances of getting an infection are as small as they are from the normal pen needle.

Some people use a different type of syringe on which you can change needles but that's mainly because they are scared of an 8mm needle (or believe that the needle becomes blunt from extracting).

This is exactly what I do with the sterile needles linked above. It's quick and easy. The needles are cheap & arrive quickly. I couldn't be bothered messing around with pliers & YouTube videos.

Yes you do.
My diabetic nurse told me.
Tye needle is going inside the rubber .. then inside your flesh.. not on the top where you have wiped.

I am also nurse trained. What do you think the medical grade rubber is going to do to you? It’s only ever had a sterile needle passed through it. If you use the screw on needles then that has passed through and potentially contaminated your entire vial by your reckoning?

Are you boiling single use syringes? 🤯

It is not a babys bottle. Boiling does not adequately sterilise medical equipment - you would need an autoclave with much higher temperatures.

Single use syringes are not designed for boiling, there is a risk of mechanical failure from warping or damaged needles. Not to mention the leeching of harmful chemicals from the plastic.

Easily available human medical grade syringes come packed individually sterile - why do you need to boil it?