What is saxenda?
Saxenda contains “Liraglutide,” the same as a hormone that occurs naturally in the human body and controls blood sugar and insulin levels.
It is a prescription medication, and your doctor will prescribe it after proper investigation and evaluate your health condition, body response, side effects, and contraindications. Self-using of liraglutide-containing medicines may cause serious health problems.
Saxenda Pharmaceutical dosage form:
The Saxenda injection is a type of auto-injector pen containing the medication solution for subcutaneous use.
It is available in a box consisting of 5 prefilled pens. Each pen contain 3 ml solution in a concentration of liraglutide 6mg per ml, so each pen contains 18mg of liraglutide. You can use this injection at home easily by giving it sub-cutaneously each day.
What is saxenda used for?
Saxenda is used with diet and exercise to treat obesity in adults with weight-related medical problems, children with obesity over 60 kg (132 lbs) above their ideal weight, and adults with moderate to severe central obesity. However, you can not use this insulin for treating type 1 diabetes. Therefore, it is essential to follow your doctor’s instructions about all your medications.
Dosage Guideline:
The Patients taking Saxenda should follow a 4-week dose escalation to reach the clinically efficacious 3-mg dose for weight loss. In addition, the 4-week dose-escalation period can reduce the occurrence of gastrointestinal symptoms.
- The recommended dosage is,
- 0.6 mg per day on week 1,
- 1.2 mg/day on week 2,
- 1.8 mg/day on week 3, and
- 2.4 mg/day on week 4.
- 3mg/day on 5th week.
The maintenance dosage of Saxenda is 3 mg a day and can not be increased by more than 3 mg a day.
If you did not lose at least 4% of your starting weight after 16 weeks, it’s unlikely that you will see a better result with the continued use of Saxenda. Therefore, it’s advisable to stop and try another way.
How does saxenda works
- Saxenda( liraglutide) stimulates the pancreas to produce insulin in response to increased blood glucose levels.
- Saxenda injection (liraglutide) suppresses the appetite, resulting in low food intake.
- Saxenda (liraglutide) inhibits glucagon secretion, which regulates blood sugar levels by increasing glucose in the blood.
- Saxenda also slows down gastric emptying and, as a result, prevents a steep rise in post-prandial blood glucose levels.
So Saxenda injection decreases appetite, stops glucagon secretion, and slows digestion, which means you can lose weight fast.
What should I do if I miss a dose?
If you miss your daily Saxenda dose, use it as soon as you remember. Then take your next daily dose as usual on the following day. Do not take a double dose or increase your dose on the following day to make up for your missed saxenda dose.
If you miss a dose, contact your healthcare provider if it has been more than three days since your last dose.
How to use Saxenda pen:
It is simple and easy to use. It is injected under the skin at any time of the day, with or without a meal. You should change the injection site each day. For example, you can use it on the thigh or arm, but the best injection site is an abdominal area, but keep at least 2 cm distance away from the umbilical cord.
For more details, Would you please watch this video
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How to store Saxenda pen
You can keep an unopened injection pen in the refrigerator. Do not freeze it, and throw away the medication if it has become frozen. Please do not use an expired pen, and even it’s new and sored well.
You can Keep an opened( in use) pen in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Protect the pen from moisture, heat, and sunlight. Use within 30 days. Remove the needle before storing a pen, and keep the cap on the pen when not in use.
Final thoughts:
If you are interested in using saxenda for weight loss. In that case, you should consider the side effects and expected weight loss outcome because the active drug liraglutide has a lot of side effects and are difficult to tolerate. If you can lose weight with exercise and dieting, that would be great for you.
