Injection pen

An injection pen (also known as a drug pen) is a device used to inject drugs under the skin. The pen, launched for the first time, aims to improve patient compliance by making injectable drugs easier and more convenient to use. The main difference between injection pens and traditional vials and syringes is that they are easier to use for people with poor flexibility, poor vision, or a need for portability in order to administer medications on time. The injection pen also reduces the fear or adversity of self-injecting drugs, which increases the likelihood that a person will take them.

Injection pens are commonly used for drugs that people inject repeatedly over a relatively short period of time, especially insulin and insulin analogues (called insulin pens) used to treat diabetes. Many other drugs are also available as injection pens, including other injectable drugs used to treat diabetes, high cholesterol, prevent migraines, and other monoclonal antibodies. Studies show that pens are at least as effective as vials and syringes, and surveys show that the vast majority of people prefer pens to vials and syringes, if at all.

The primary goal of the injectable pen is to improve patient compliance by making it easier and more convenient for people to use injectable therapies. This is especially problematic for injectable drugs, given the extra work associated with them and the potential aversion to self-injectable drugs.

The pen improves patient compliance by increasing the convenience of self-administering injections as well as the portability of injections. In addition, pens are easier to operate and use than bottles and syringes, making them suitable for people with mobility problems, cognitive or visual impairments, or people who are concerned about not being able to use bottles and syringes properly. For drugs where not everyone follows standard doses, injection pens are designed to deliver accurate doses more easily and accurately, while vials and syringes require people to prepare the correct dose themselves. The pen can also remove the stigma or fear surrounding the use of injectable drugs in a public setting, such as using insulin before eating at a restaurant.

A combination syringe pen containing multiple medications used to treat medical conditions is designed to reduce the number of injections a person must use to administer their medications. The reduction in the number of injections required may reduce the risk of noncompliance due to forgetfulness or an unwillingness to self-administer the drug.

The pen consists of a chamber or cartridge, a tip connecting the needle, and a piston or plunger for administering the dose. Some pens, including most insulin pens, include dials for adjusting the injection dose before each administration. Compared with traditional vials and syringes, dials enable more accurate dosing measurements, especially for low doses of insulin. Injection pens with dose-adjusting dials may also include clicking sounds or other means of confirming dose-adjustments.

Some pens may include a cartridge filled with medication that can be replaced when it is empty in order to reuse the pen itself, while others are designed to be discarded after their pre-filled chamber is exhausted. Pens designed for single use can also be auto-injectors, which do not require the user to press the plunger to administer the dose.