MediGel® FAQ
How do I add medications to MediGel® Sucralose?
There are two ways to add medications to MediGel® Sucralose: via syringe through the top of the foil cup lid or by removing the foil lid and mixing the drug directly into the gel.
The most common method is to liquify the gel and then add the medication through the foil lid. Thermoreversible gel mixing instructions can be found on our website here. After the medication is added, shake the cup vigorously for 10 seconds to mix the medication evenly in the gel. One trick to ensure that the medication is mixed evenly into the gel is to add a natural food color dye with the medication solution. This enables a visual confirmation of the mixing.
After the medication is added, it is best to place the gel into a refrigerator for 30 minutes prior to using the gel with the animals. The cooler temperature allows the gel to set and protects the medicant during storage.
How do I calculate the medication dosage for using MediGel® Sucralose?
To answer this question, it is best to use an example calculation. In this calculation, we are using a drug concentration of 10mg/kg/day. For a 30-gram mouse, use 10mg/kg x 0.03kg = 0.3mg of drug/day/mouse.
A 30–35-gram mouse on average will consume 7mL of gel per day (about 0.2 ounces), so we would want a concentration of 0.30mg/7mL/gel = 0.04mg/mL. Because our products are in 2oz containers (60mL), you would want to add 2.4mg of ibuprofen to one cup of MediGel® Sucralose (60mL x 0.04mg/mL – 2.4mg).
One cup of MediGel® Sucralose medicates and hydrates up to 5 mice for 2 days.