Table 5.

Type of insulin by onset of action, peak effect and duration of action

Insulin type	Onset of action	Peak effect	Duration of action
Lispro, aspart, glulisine	5 to 15 min	45 to 75 min	2 to 4 h
Regular	About 30 min	2 to 4 h	5 to 8 h
NPH	About 2 h	4 to 12 h	18 to 28 h
Insulin glargine	About 2 h	No peak	20 to 24 h
Insulin detemir	About 2 h	No peak	6 to 24 h1
NPL	About 2 h	Six hours	15 h
Insulin degludec	About 2 h	No peak	> 40 h
Insulin U-300	About 2 h	No peak	> 36 h

¹Duration of action is dose-dependent. At higher doses (≥ 0.8 units/kg), mean duration of action is longer and less variable. Modified from: McCulloch DK. General principles of insulin therapy in diabetes mellitus. Uptodate, March 24, 2016. Available from: URL: http://www.uptodate.com/contents/general-principles-of-insulin-therapy-in-diabetes-mellitus.