Objective: To evaluate patients’ knowledge of, and practices regarding, the use and storage of insulin pens for insulin-treated diabetes.

Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study randomly recruited 152 insulin-treated diabetics using an insulin pen who were followed up at the Outpatient Department, Siriraj Hospital, between February and November 2017. Each subject underwent a structured interview conducted by the same investigator. A retrospective chart review was also performed to collect participants’ diabetes information.

Results: The 152 participants had a mean age of 61±15 years, and 59% were women. Of the subjects, 59% had had diabetes for 10 years or more, 35% had used an insulin pen for five years or more, and 76% took care of their own insulin pen. In daily practice, 60% refrigerated their in-use insulin pen, 68% had never noticed a visual change in the insulin quality of the in-use pen, and half did not know the duration for which an insulin pen should be used once opened. Moreover, a third used their in-use pen longer than the manufacturer’s recommendation.

Conclusion: Most longtime-use, insulin-treated, diabetic patients lacked knowledge of proper insulin pen storage and usage. Moreover, some healthcare providers appeared to be unaware of the need to impart this knowledge to their patients. Ongoing educational teaching programs are therefore needed for both healthcare providers and diabetics to improve the glycemic control and safety of insulin-treated patients.

Keywords: Insulin pen, Insulin storage, Insulin use knowledge, Diabetes education