SutureSelfMD
“Empowering individuals with
information to make better decisions about their out-of-pocket healthcare
expenses.”
Donald Altman, M.D., M.B.A.
August 28, 2016
Injectable Epinephrine
This is a demonstration to start a
dialogue only and NOT meant to suggest or encourage a treatment modality for
individuals requiring epinephrine injections
Healthcare
professionals can help patients or families needing injectable epinephrine,
prepare a self-filled device that is very inexpensive and probably takes less
than one minute to construct.
Problem /
Fact: The price of injectable epinephrine in self
loaded sterile syringes is currently as much as $400.00 and $600.00 per twin
pack dose. This puts the cost out of
reach of many parents who children may have life threatening allergic
reactions.
The
components of this injection are very inexpensive. Estimated total cost less than $5.00
1 ampule of
epinephrine 1/1000
1 cc syringe
1 27 gauge
needle
1 or 2 drinking
straws or a cut off pen to act as a stopper
1 alcohol
swab
1 small PVC
container (optional)
Disclaimers
Medication
epinephrine, syringe and needles require a prescription from licensed medical
doctor.
The ability
and therefore the safety, of the lay public to administer epinephrine in this
system is not established and it is not recommended without the supervision and
/ or training by a healthcare professional.
Improper use
of epinephrine can be life threatening or fatal.
Assumptions
and areas of research:
It is
possible that the components can be placed in a sterile plastic syringe for 2
to 3 months without significant loss of potency or contamination 1
Cost
effective pre-filled syringes can be assembled, ideally with the help of a
medical professional. 2
Healthcare
professionals at the site where families enter the market, or seek
non-emergency care be available to help families assemble pre-filled syringes.
Parents and
lay individuals are capable of properly using epinephrine for emergencies
without depending on the costly autoinjector systems currently on the market
Photos
below:
(1) Parts needed for a self pre-filled device. Syringe, a needle, and an ampule of epinephrine. Note that that standard ampules have one cc of fluid, and only .3 cc is needed.
(2) Box, case, and cartridge for commercially available auto-injectable epinephrine.
References
