Sterile saline

[Woodyscooby]

Hello... I'm about to start using methylcobalamin from Oxford bio but haven't yet got sterile saline... Oxford boo said eye wash would be OK but can only find 0.83 instead of 0.9 would this be OK pls x

[wedgewood]

I’m surprised that Oxford biosciences suggested that you use eye-wash . You need proper saline for injections , which is only obtainable on prescription in U.K. I would not risk using eye-wash . Saline ampoules are obtainable from German online pharmacies . Ask them to tell you how you can obtain them from Germany .

[helvella]

I would not use eye wash.

Saline for injections is subject to higher standards including non-pyrogenicity.

Some eyewash saline might be exactly the same as saline for injections, but I'd not be willing to take the risk.

[Foggyme Administrator]

I’m quite shocked that Oxford Sciences advised you to use sterile eye wash to mix the methylcobalamin for injection purposes.

As others have said, this is not injection grade saline and should never be injected into the body.

There’s another problem here. Even if you purchase sterile saline that’s injection grade, this should be used immediately - because once it’s open it is no longer sterile and should therefore never be saved for later use - even when mixed with the methylcobalamin powder.

Storing any mixed methylcobalamin for injection at a later stage is not advisable since it is not sterile and can become contaminated - a breeding ground for germs. And the longer it is stored in this non-sterile state - where bugs may grow - and the more injections withdrawn from it, the greater the chance of contamination

For this reason we advise that this methylcobalamin powder is NOT used for single or multiple injections (even when mixed with appropriate medical grade injectable normal saline - recalling that this is no longer sterile once opened).

We always advise single dose sterile ampoules of B12 for injection purposes.

Again, quite shocking that you were advised that eye wash solution is suitable for injection purposes!

[fbirder]

Even if you do source sterile saline, and you have your own clean room for making the solution contamination-free; you still will not be able to control the pH - which means your methylcobalamin will soon be hydroxocobalamin.

[wedgewood]

If you are madly keen to inject Methylcobalamin ( which is the powder that you get from Oxfordbiosciences , ) then it’s really advisable to get it in single-use ampoules from a German pharmacy in Munich . You need to email them on [e-mail] You can write in English . Or you can phone them on [phone] . and they will give you the information you need . You can pay using PayPal or Bank transfer . I don’t know if things have changed since Brexit happened on 1st. January.

[FlipperTD]

Scientist, not medic. The others have advised you very wisely!

On a technical note, 'Normal Saline' historically has been made to 0.9% or sometimes labelled 0.85%, by the hospital pharmacy, [back in those days] and used at the time quite interchangeably [if my creaky memory serves me well]. Self-injection is safe, but dilution of pharmaceuticals with another inappropriate liquid first doesn't seem at all wise to me. Plus once it's been opened, that's how the bugs get in.

Oh, worth mentioning that 'Eye Wash' to many people could include stuff like 'Optrex' and that certainly isn't physiological saline!