Toujeo SoloStar (insulin glargine) is a basal insulin contained in a convenient injection pen. It can be utilized by type 1 diabetics and qualifying type 2 diabetics.

As a basal insulin, while Toujeo SoloStar is powerful, it is meant to be a background insulin. It is released slowly over a 24-hour period, and is not intended to deal with blood glucose spikes, such as occur after a meal. Another, faster-acting insulin should still be used, if needed, to manage blood glucose spikes. Type 1 diabetics will certainly need a fast-acting insulin; type 2 diabetics will vary.

This medication, particular when other antidiabetic medications are also taken, can produce hypoglycemia (low blood glucose). All patients taking Toujeo SoloStar---or any type of insulin---should familiarize themselves with the warning signs of hypoglycemia and how to handle it if it does develop. All patients should monitor blood glucose closely at the start of treatment and following any dose adjustments.

The effects of Toujeo SoloStar on patients below age 18 and in pregnant or breastfeeding mothers have not been studied. Other medications containing the same active ingredient have not shown adverse effects in unborn or nursing babies, or in children. Untreated diabetes can cause significant harm to the mother and/or children. Toujeo SoloStar use in these populations is an individual decision that should be discussed with a doctor.

What You're Ordering

This product page is for Toujeo SoloStar. Each order will deliver one or more injection pens (depending on how many were ordered), each of which contains 1.5 milliliters (ml) of solution for injection. Each pen can be adjusted to administer a specific dose, and each pen can be reused either until the medication is gone or for up to four weeks after it was opened.

A similar product is Toujeo DoubleStar, which is identical except it contains 3 ml of injectable solution. While this might sound more convenient, its usefulness depends on dose amount---since each pen should be discarded four weeks after being opened, some patients will wind up discarding a lot of medication with the DoubleStar version.

Many patients are initially confused by the amount of medication in each pen. As mentioned above, Toujeo SoloStar contains 1.5 ml injectable solution. That injectable solution contains 450 units of insulin glargine. Likewise, Toujeo DoubleStar contains 3 ml of injectable solution, which contains 900 units of insulin glargine. So, while a patient may be instructed to "take 10 units of Toujeo SoloStar per day," it's important to remember that units are not milliliters---each pen contains numerous doses of medication even if high doses are prescribed, regardless of its low milliliter quantity.

It's important to clarify that the amount of a dose of Toujeo SoloStar is not interchangeable with other products, including other basal insulin products and other products containing the same active ingredient, insulin glargine. Toujeo products use units to describe a dose, but these particular units are unique to Toujeo and must not be applied to other medications, or vice versa. Patients should always double-check that the correct product was received, and never assume dose amounts are the same between brands.

Dosing Information

It is not possible to broadly summarize dose amount for a given patient; it is too variable. Personal factors, such as age or weight, can influence dosage as well as the type of diabetes, its severity, patient response, other medications being taken, other medical conditions present, and so forth.

Additional, fast-acting insulin is required for type 1 diabetics to take with meals, and may be required for some type 2 diabetics. Type 2 diabetics may also take other, non-insulin antidiabetic treatments as well as Toujeo SoloStar in some cases, provided a doctor approves.

Toujeo SoloStar works in three ways to help maintain an insulin baseline:

• Replaces insulin not produced by the body
• Promotes glucose absorption from the blood into other tissues
• Inhibits the liver's production of glucose

The above are very effective for the majority of patients who utilize Toujeo SoloStar, and treatment may continue for as long as it provides benefit. For type 1 diabetics this is often indefinitely; type 2 diabetics may fluctuate a lot more depending on other medications and perhaps lifestyle changes, if made.

Once a dose has been established, administration is once per day, every day. Any time can be chosen, but once a time has been chosen it should be adhered to---the medication should be administered at the same time every day. If a dose is forgotten, it may be administered if it is within three hours of the standard dose time; if it is beyond three hours, it should be skipped entirely and treatment resumed with the next dose.

Benefits of Treatment

Benefits of Toujeo SoloStar or DoubleStar for patients it is deemed appropriate for can be tremendous. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetics will get immediate and long-term benefit, ranging from mitigating the daily fluctuations of blood glucose and the resulting negative impacts to significantly reducing the risk of long term, often severe, and sometimes lethal complications of diabetes.

Patients taking a basal insulin like Toujeo SoloStar will also need less fast-acting insulin or other antidiabetic medications. While Toujeo SoloStar alone is not enough to counter blood glucose spikes, it will make a difference---and reduced fast-acting insulin injections will, at least to some extent, reduce the risk of hypoglycemia.

Treating type 1 or type 2 diabetes is important for patients who wish to maintain a long, independent, and happy life. Long-term complications---such as vision impairment, kidney impairment, loss of nerve function, and so forth are often undetectable until considerable, and often irreversible, damage has already been done. These can lead to blindness, dialysis, diabetic neuropathy, loss of limbs, and many other severe, costly, and sometimes fatal complications. Toujeo SoloStar may not be the only medication involved in treatment, but it is an important step in managing diabetes.