I’ve been taking Betaseron (interferon beta-1b) for over three years and this is the only disease-modifying drug I’ve tried. Everyone is different, but for me this medication has worked well and has actually allowed me to recently go two years relapse-free instead of having the usual annual attack. So the news of a thinner needle excites me. Rebif has been known in the past to have the thinnest needle (29-gauge) out of the three subcutaneous injectable drugs–Copaxone, Betaseron, and Rebif. Now Betaseron’s 30-gauge needle (replacing the original 27-gauge one) is the thinnest on the market. For patients this means a possible decrease in skin surface reactions and pain. This same size needle is also used for pediatric injections and insulin treatments for diabetics.
Along with the thinner needles, a new autoinjector has been created. Old autoinjectors are not compatible with the new needles because they might not fully administer the entire dose of Betaseron.
New needles and autoinjectors are expected to be available this month (November 2008.) To find out more about switching to the 30-gauge needles, contact BETAPLUS (formerly MS Pathways) at 1-800-788-1467.
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