need advice regarding med storage

[Anonymous]

i received my medications for my upcoming IVF cycle earlier this week. my insurance provider shipped everything in dry ice, even the drugs that are required to be at room temp. the instructions on the handouts are very clear. so, we ended up putting the ganilerex and novarel (trigger shot) in the fridge. aetna and my SG nurse says its fine but i just have this nagging feeling now. i already tried them to send me new meds and they refused. anyone else have a similar experience? i am thinking about just paying out of pocket for new drugs even though i know it seems crazy. any advice would be much appreciated!

[Anonymous]

OP -- I think your drugs will be fine. FWIW -- most drugs, even those that need to be refrigerated, can tolerate being outside of their prescribed temperature range for long periods of time. It is just that they should not be stored outside of their temperature limits for months.

[Anonymous]

Were the meds to be stored at room temperature shipped in coolers with fewer ice packs than those to be refrigerated? That was how mine arrived, and I had the same concern. I called the pharmacy, and they said that they include the ice packs with the former just in case they wind up sitting somewhere in transit that is hotter than room temperature.

[Anonymous]

OP here. No, everything was together. Follistim on the bottom near the ice packs and then the ganirelix and noveral on top of that. my husband then put everything in the fridge because the cooler had a sticker on it that said to refrigerate all contents. now, they've all been refrigerated for several days. even though the insurance company, pharm. company and nurse says its fine i am feeling nervous.

[Anonymous]

I always kept all my meds refrigerated, and they were all effective. I was a good responder, and ovulated 42 hours after trigger.

[Anonymous]

i've used novarel before and have never refrigerated it - just got a bfp a week ago too.
if nurse and pharmacist says you are ok, i think you are....

[Anonymous]

It's fine to refrigerate all of them. I just put everything in the fridge, including the ones that say room temp is okay, so I I have everything in one place. As a PP said, I think the concern with these meds is that they not get ABOVE room temp. Below is fine. And if they need to be refridgerated and are packed in ice, they are generally okay in the package for 24 hours. I'm on my sixth cycle and have always responded well.

[Anonymous]

Did you say you put the Ganarelix in the fridge??? That one specifically needs to stay room temperature!!!! You should have the pharmacy send you new Ganirelix immediately. In my meds package from SGFC there are big bold words in the instructions that specifically say NOT to put that one in the fridge.
As far as everything else (including the Novarel) you can leave at room temp or put in the fridge. Either or will be fine.

[Anonymous]

OP again--aetna mail order pharmacy is refusing to send new ganilirex even though they made an error (they said they called the pharm. company who stated it was fine). i am just going to buy those shots out of pocket on my own and eat the cost. don't need added stress during the IVF cycle. at least the novarel is okay. it will be a hit (about $500, i think) but i just don't think i have any other choice at this point. thanks to everyone for their feedback...

[Anonymous]

I've never heard that about the Ganirelex before, and I've used it in over 10 cycles. It was always very effective for me, holding off ovulation, keeping the lead follicles from getting too far ahead. I know it worked, because my lh would decline after taking it, and my e2 would stall out for a day or two.

[Anonymous]

Why not just call the manufacturer and ask them to define what is the length of time for permitted excursion from room temperature? If it is in contradiction with what your nurse and pharmacy are saying, then ask them to fax it to you and the pharmacy.