Pregnyl HELP please

[buliej]

I'm using Pregnyl for the first time...the tiny glass vials (or ampoules) that you need to "mix" with syringes. I completely screwed up - I have 3 doses (tonight was my first). My first try - completely crushed the glass vial with my fingers, spilled the liquid and did not have enough to give injection so I tossed it. I mixed a second dose - a bit more successfully but I did cut my thumb trying to "snap" the top (mine was more like crush - glass even got into the vial). I then was baffled about how to get the dose from the vial into the small needle. It took me some time and I got it, got the air bubbles out and injected. A fair amount of the small dose (20 ml) came back out of the injection site...by fair amount I mean a very visible droplet.

I guess I'll have to ask for a replacement dose - has anyone ever had to do this?
Do you think the droplet matters? - the dose was so small that I'm afraid every drop counts.
And why do they make something that is so difficult to work with..ok, my thumb is bleeding on my keyboard - I think I should go take care of this.

[Bengal]

Hi BullieJ

It is an antiquated injection isn't it. My IVF Handbook - Dealings with problems after hours book says;

Fluid lost while preparing Preg Injec
Should I contact my FS after hours ? If 50 % or more remains then inject
IF NOT- Call FS to authorise replacement, then attend ....... to collect
Should I contact the clinic the next business day - YES

[Where there's hope]

Buliej - I cut my thumb the exact SAME way on the darned Pregnyl. Mentioned it to the clinic nurse when I saw her. She agreed they are difficult to use and it is very easy to cut yourself WLAB has given you the answers about what to do with some lost dosage. I just wanted to post now as an excuse to wish you all the very best of luck, and some more for this cycle I hope the 3 months of DHEA has made the difference for you

[buliej]

Thanks WLAB and WTH (so nice to hear from you!).

I had an appointment at the clinic this morning and they are not concerned about the lost droplet and gave me additional Pregnyl as well. I also had a "refresher" course at my request...here's what I learned (in case someone searches for this in the future):

- you must get all of the liquid in the liquid ampoule to the bottom of the ampoule (I had forgotten this part) - you do this by flicking or snapping your wrist while holding the ampoule - it may take a number of times to get all of the liquid out of the tiny top and into the bottom.

- to "snap" the glass off - firstly, you are not seeking to crush it (as I did), but it should snap off - and there's a little black dot which indicates where your thumb should be to get the best breaking point - she had me do it while holding a tiny alcohol pad that was still in it's wrapper as it gives you a nice cushion but not too much of one that you don't have any feel or control - so basically you put the wrapped alcohol pad between your thumb and the black dot and SNAP the top off. They let me try myself and it worked much better than what I did last night.

- ok, now for the part I still don't get - after you mix the liquid and powder by sucking up the liquid in the large syringe and squirting into the powder - to draw it in the small syringe for injection, you need to tilt the ampoule and suck it up in the small syringe. I don't really see how this works as by tilting it I felt like I was going to spill it and I think this method requires 2 people and DH wasn't around. I explained to her how I did it and they said fine. What I did was after it was mixed, I took apart the small syringe so that it is in 2 parts (plunger and needle/plastic tube) and I drew the liquid up in the large syringe and squirted it back in the small. Now for the hard part - I re-inserted the plunger part for the small syringe ever so slightly - enough to stay in place when held needle pointing up, but that's all - I then tapped, tapped, tapped like on TV to get all of the air up on the needle end and all of the liquid down closer to the plunger - this allows you to force all the air out before injecting.

Hope that helps future users!

[Persephone1]

I'm a complete and total feminist, but the one thing I didn't even try to do was the pregnyl injection (I only had one, but it was my trigger shot). DH snapped it, mixed it, put it in the syringe, and even injected it for me - I was an emotional mess after ten days of gonal-f pens.

So I can't do anything except offer you my for letting down the gender. Except to say that pregnyl is really hard, and two of my friends who are going through IVF also had difficulty getting it all in. Google helps.

[juniper76]

buliej, sorry to hear you had such dramas with the pregnyl. I'm always nervous about that one. Glad to hear you've got it sorted now (hopefully).

Seph, the pregnyl is the only thing my DH does too, mostly because my FS wants it done IM instead of sub-q (which is apparently what most people do?). He's getting pretty good at them (done 5 now), but one time he didn't get all the liquid in the bottom of the vial and I had to come to the rescue...

[sammiejam]

One of the worst fights DH and I have ever had was over those damn pregnal injections. He COMPLETELY stuffed up 2 of them and I sliced my thumb to ribbons on the 3rd.
I am ashamed to admit I shreiked like a fishwife at him and he finally cracked and yelled back and then CUSSED! lol.

We made up pretty quick though and then had to meet FS at 11oclock on a sunday night at his rooms for more shots.

Stupid pregnal.

[Cuddlepie]

Its hard hey? But my FS specifically order the mixed one rather than the pre-mixed one appearantly it works better, so lets hope its all worth it in the end.

Also just a little tip when you snap the bottle, I always have a little tissue paper wrapped around so I won't get a cut. Tab the bottle neck before you snap and you don't have to hold it really tight and just do it really quickly, it should come up without breaking.

Good luck ladies! I shall join you all for this fun activity next month!