Two places you can keep it
The fridge is the long-term home. Once you take a pen out, the room-temperature clock starts.
- •Store new, unused pens in the refrigerator
- •Do not store in the freezer
- •Do not store directly next to the refrigerator cooling element
- •Keep the pen cap on when the pen is not in use, to protect Saxenda from light
- •Store the pen without an injection needle attached
Important: The label says the Saxenda pen you are using should be thrown away after 30 days, even if it still has Saxenda left in it. A pen in use can be kept at room temperature or in the fridge — the 30-day limit applies either way, so write the date you first used it on the box.
Where in the fridge
Not all fridge shelves are equal. The door swings in temperature and the back wall can briefly freeze.
- ✓Middle shelf is best — most stable temperature
- ✗Not the door — temperature swings every time it opens
- ✗Not the back wall — may freeze when the fridge cycles
- ✗Not the crisper drawer — too humid, can damage the pen
Safe vs damaging conditions
Getting this wrong means the drug silently stops working — the pen looks identical either way.
- •Unused pens in the fridge at 36–46°F (2–8°C) until the printed expiration date
- •A pen in use for up to 30 days at 59–86°F (15–30°C)
- •A pen in use kept in the fridge instead, still within the same 30 days
- •The pen cap on, to protect Saxenda from light
- •The pen stored with no needle attached
- •Carrying a spare pen and needles, which the label recommends in case of loss or damage
- •Freezing — the label says do not freeze Saxenda and do not use it if it has been frozen
- •Storing the pen directly adjacent to the refrigerator cooling element
- •Excessive heat and sunlight — the label says to keep Saxenda away from heat and out of the light
- •Leaving the pen in a car or anywhere it can get too hot or too cold
- •Keeping a pen in use for longer than 30 days
- •Dust, dirt or liquid — the label says not to wash, soak or lubricate the pen
Travelling with your pen
The room-temperature window (30 days) makes travel simpler than it sounds, but there are rules.
Never put the pen in checked baggage. Airplane cargo holds can drop well below freezing, which permanently damages the drug.
For flights over a few hours, use a dedicated insulin travel case with a cold pack. Wrap the cold pack so it does not touch the pen directly — direct contact can freeze it.
TSA and most international airports allow injectable medication through security. Bring the original box with the prescription label. You do not need a doctor's letter, but it can help at some borders.
A parked car in summer gets far hotter than the storage limit. Any temperature above 86°F shortens the life of the pen. If you are worried, take it with you into air-conditioned spaces.
How to spot a damaged pen
The big trap: a frozen-then-thawed pen looks completely normal. Check these signs before every injection.
- •The liquid is not clear and colourless — the label says to use the pen only if the solution is clear, colourless and free of particles
- •The pen has been frozen at any point
- •The needle is bent or damaged
- •No drop appears at the needle tip after repeating the flow check, even with a new needle
- •The pen you are using has been in use for more than 30 days
- •The expiration date printed on the label has passed
If in doubt, call your pharmacy — most will replace a damaged pen if you bring it in.
Disposing of used pens
Never the regular bin. Needles need a sharps container.
- 1Put the needle straight into an FDA-cleared sharps disposal container after each injection — the label says not to put it in household trash
- 2Do not put the inner needle cap back on the needle; if you have no sharps container to hand, the label describes a one-handed method using the outer cap
- 3Put empty pens, and any pen used for 30 days that still contains Saxenda, into the sharps container too
- 4If you do not have an FDA-cleared container, the label describes a heavy-duty plastic container that closes with a tight-fitting, puncture-resistant lid, stands upright and stable, is leak-resistant and is labelled as hazardous waste
- 5When the container is almost full, follow your community guidelines — the label points to fda.gov/safesharpsdisposal for state-by-state information
Common questions
Written and maintained by one person · Built with agentic AI tools · Every number checked against the cited trial · Not medical advice
- Saxenda (liraglutide) prescribing information — Dosage and Administration (2.1), How Supplied/Storage and Handling (16), Instructions for Use View source ↗
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