Injectable Fertility Meds & Gluten? Anybody Know Anything?

[brigala]

So, I'm about to undergo some fertility treatments...

Among other things, I will need an injectable progesterone treatment for an unknown period of time -- a minimum of two weeks The fertility clinic says that it's usually suspended in a "food oil" base, typically sesame oil, but the NP is concerned that the base MAY contain gluten. I am not sure why she is concerned about this, I told her I should be fine with sesame oil, but she felt I should use a different medication.

She is recommending something called Ethyl Oleate Progesterone. The suspension is not a food-based oil and she feels there's a lower risk of it containing gluten. The problem is, it's not readily available. It's only available at compounding pharmacies. I was kind of hoping to get my insurance (Kaiser) to pay for it; the regular injectable progesterone is in their formulary, and this special one is not. And I would be surprised if it can even be ordered through the Kaiser pharmacy system.

So I know this is grasping at straws here, but I was kind of wondering whether anybody here had done fertility treatments, including the injectable progesterone, and knows anything about any of this stuff?

Thanks in advance...

-Elizabeth

[psawyer]

I have never found an injectable substance that contained gluten. Gluten acts as a thickening agent, which is not anything you want in an injection or IV drip--it would tend to clog the needle.

So, while I have no specific knowledge about this product, I highly doubt that it is a source of gluten.

[ravenwoodglass]

I would ask your NP for the name of the med and the company that makes it and call them. Chances are excellent that it is going to be fine, like Peter says I have never heard of an injection having gluten but it will set your mind and hers at ease.

[brigala]

Thank you for the replies. My gut feeling is that the regular stuff is fine.

I just got off the phone with the Kaiser OB/GYN clinic and it sounds like I may be able to get the meds through the Kaiser pharmacy. The regular progesterone is on their formulary, so I'll need a good reason to get the other stuff if I want to get it through them. SO... what I did after talking to the nurse at Kaiser is I requested the nurse at the fertility clinic to send prescribing information on both types of progesterone to the Kaiser OB/GYN nurse. Then we can check with the Kaiser pharmacy and/or the drug manufacturers about gluten and other potential allergens in the regular stuff and make an informed choice.

Basically Kaiser would need to verify that the regular stuff isn't an option before they would help pay for the special stuff anyway, so regardless of how founded or unfounded the fertility nurse's concerns are Kaiser needs the information on both drugs.

At least it's nice to know that they're making an effort to not give me anything I would react badly to. Even if they are even more paranoid about gluten in drugs than I am.

-Elizabeth