Table 1.

Insulin pharmacokinetic profiles^a

Insulin typeb	Onset	Peak	DOA	Cmax (mU/mL)	Tmax(min)	Appearance
Rapid-acting
Lispro19	5–15 minutes	30–60 minutes	3–4 hours	116	30–90	Clear, colorless
Aspart20	10–20	40–50 minutes	3–5 hours	82.1	40–50	Clear, colorless
Glulisine21,22	20 minutes	1 hour	4 hours	82	30–90	Clear, colorless
Short-acting
Regular3,13,15–17	30 minutes	60–120 minutes	6–8 hours	51	50–120	Clear, colorless
Intermediate-acting
NPH12	1–2 hours	3–8 hours	12–15 hours	22.8	360–720	Cloudy, white
Long-acting
Glarginec,23	1–2 hours	Flatc	~24 hours	18.9	None	Clear, colorless
Detemird,4,24	1.6 hours	Flatc	Up to 24 hoursc	149 pmol/L	None	Clear, colorless

^aNotes: Estimates only; effects in individual patients vary;

^ball values are for subcutaneous administration of the insulin analog;

^ccannot be mixed with any other insulin – requires a separate injection;

^dvaries by dose; higher dose – longer duration.

Abbreviations: DOA, duration of action; NPH, neutral protamine Hagedorn.