Which insulin is short-acting?

Which insulin is short-acting?

• A. Regular insulin
• B. Lispro
• C. Ultralente
• D. NPH insulin

Answer: (A)

Short-acting insulin refers to preparations that begin to work relatively quickly and have a moderate duration, suitable for covering meals. Regular insulin is the classic short-acting option, with onset about 30–60 minutes, a peak around 2–4 hours, and a duration of roughly 6–10 hours, making it suitable for premeal dosing. Lispro is a rapid-acting analog that acts even faster (onset ~15 minutes, peak ~1–2 hours, duration ~3–5 hours), so it is not categorized as short-acting. Ultralente is long-acting, with a slow onset and prolonged effect, and NPH is intermediate-acting, not short-acting. Thus, the short-acting insulin in this set is regular insulin.

Short-acting insulin refers to preparations that begin to work relatively quickly and have a moderate duration, suitable for covering meals. Regular insulin is the classic short-acting option, with onset about 30–60 minutes, a peak around 2–4 hours, and a duration of roughly 6–10 hours, making it suitable for premeal dosing. Lispro is a rapid-acting analog that acts even faster (onset ~15 minutes, peak ~1–2 hours, duration ~3–5 hours), so it is not categorized as short-acting. Ultralente is long-acting, with a slow onset and prolonged effect, and NPH is intermediate-acting, not short-acting. Thus, the short-acting insulin in this set is regular insulin.