Insulin pens under recall over faulty cartridges that could break or crack

The cartridges "may crack or break if exposed to certain chemicals, like some cleaning agents," the Food and Drug administration said in announcing the recall in the U.S.

Using a broken or cracked cartridge could affect the amount of insulin the pen delivers, and that could lead to high blood sugar levels, the Danish drugmaker said, but a company spokesperson also said they believed the risk was low.

The defective pens were distributed between August of 2016 and June 22 of this year to pharmacies, healthcare providers and patients in the U.S.

Novo Nordisk is contacting distributors and patients by mail to make arrangements to replace the product.

Read more about the recall and affected batches here.