This i s a great question! Once a syringe is opened there is a small, but very real, risk of contamination by microdes-bacterial, virus or fungi. Several studies have shown that the filler is free of bugs after various amounts of time. There is no consensus, though, basically the amount of time before it is considered unusable is whatever the injector is comfortable with. There are no hard and fast answers about when, exactly, the risk of contamination goes up. Logically the longer the filler sits after being opened the higher the risk. In my office we have a hard and firm cut off after 6 weeks. We record the opening date and throw it away after 6 weeks. Some studies say that may be to soon but I am uncomfortable letting it sit around any longer. So, the long and short of it---it varies with each individual injector. I'd double check with your injector. Best of luck to you, Dr. Amy