WHAT IS SEMAGLUTIDE?

Semaglutide is an injectable prescription medicine that may help adults and children aged ≥12 years with obesity (BMI ≥30 for adults, BMI ≥ 95th percentile for age and sex for children), or some adults with excess weight (BMI ≥27) (overweight) who also have weight-related medical problems to help them lose weight and keep it off. Semaglutide should be used with a reduced calorie meal plan and increased physical activity
Semaglutide should not be used with other semaglutide-containing products or other GLP-1 receptor agonist medicines.
It is not known if Semaglutide is safe and effective when taken with other prescription, over-the-counter, or herbal weight loss products.
It is not known if Semaglutide can be used safely in people with a history of pancreatitis.
It is not known if Semaglutide is safe and effective for use in children under 12 years of age.

WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION I SHOULD KNOW ABOUT SEMAGLUTIDE?
Semaglutide may cause serious side effects, including:
Possible thyroid tumors, including cancer. Tell your healthcare provider if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, hoarseness, trouble swallowing, or shortness of breath. These may be symptoms of thyroid cancer. In studies with rodents, Semaglutide and medicines that work like Semaglutide® caused thyroid tumors, including thyroid cancer. It is not known if Semaglutide® will cause thyroid tumors or a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) in people. Do not use Semaglutide if you or any of your family have ever had a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) or if you have an endocrine system condition called Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2).

Do not use Semaglutide if:
you or any of your family have ever had a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) or if you have an endocrine system condition called Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2)
you have had a serious allergic reaction to semaglutide.

Before using Semaglutide, tell your healthcare provider if you have any other medical conditions, including if you: have or have had problems with your pancreas or kidneys, have type 2 diabetes and a history of diabetic retinopathy have or have had depression, suicidal thoughts, or mental health issues, plan to become pregnant. Semaglutide may harm your unborn baby. You should stop using Semaglutide 2 months before you plan to become pregnant are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if Semaglutide passes into your breast milk.

Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Semaglutide may affect the way some medicines work and some medicines may affect the way Semaglutide works. Tell your healthcare provider if you are taking other medicines to treat diabetes, including sulfonylureas or insulin. Semaglutide slows stomach emptying and can affect medicines that need to pass through the stomach quickly.

MISSED DOSE

If a dose is missed, it should be administered as soon as possible and within 5 days after the missed dose. If more than 5 days have passed, the missed dose should be skipped, and the next dose should be administered on the regularly scheduled day. In each case, patients can then resume their regular once weekly dosing schedule. If more doses are missed, reducing the starting dose for re-initiation should be considered.

METHOD OF ADMINISTRATION

Semaglutide is administered once weekly at any time of the day, with or without meals.
It is to be injected subcutaneously in the abdomen, in the thigh or in the upper arm. The injection site can be changed. It should not be administered intravenously or intramuscularly.
The day of weekly administration can be changed if necessary as long as the time between two doses is at least 3 days (>72 hours). After selecting a new dosing day, once-weekly dosing should be continued.
Patients should be advised to read the instruction for use included in the package leaflet carefully before administering the medicinal product.

WHAT ARE THE POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF SEMAGLUTIDE?

Semaglutide may cause serious side effects, including:
inflammation of your pancreas (pancreatitis). Stop using Semaglutide and call your healthcare provider right away if you have severe pain in your stomach area (abdomen) that will not go away, with or without vomiting. You may feel the pain from your abdomen to your back gallbladder problems.

Semaglutide may cause gallbladder problems, including gallstones. Some gallstones may need surgery. Call your healthcare provider if you have symptoms, such as pain in your upper stomach (abdomen), fever, yellowing of the skin or eyes (jaundice), or clay-colored stools increased risk of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) in patients with type 2 diabetes, especially those who also take medicines for type 2 diabetes such as sulfonylureas or insulin. This can be both a serious and common side effect. Talk to your healthcare provider about how to recognize and treat low blood sugar and check your blood sugar before you start and while you take Semaglutide.

Signs and symptoms of low blood sugar may include dizziness or light-headedness, blurred vision, anxiety, irritability or mood changes, sweating, slurred speech, hunger, confusion or drowsiness, shakiness, weakness, headache, fast heartbeat, or feeling jittery kidney problems (kidney failure). In people who have kidney problems, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting may cause a loss of fluids (dehydration), which may cause kidney problems to get worse. It is important for you to drink fluids to help reduce your chance of dehydration serious allergic reactions. Stop using Semaglutide and get medical help right away, if you have any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction, including swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat; problems breathing or swallowing; severe rash or itching; fainting or feeling dizzy; or increase heartbeat by 3-5 beats per minute , change in vision in people with type 2 diabetes. Tell your healthcare provider if you have changes in vision during treatment with Semaglutide. Semaglutide can increase your heart rate while you are at rest, generally within 3-5 beats per minute . Tell your healthcare provider if you feel your heart racing or pounding in your chest and it lasts for several minutes. Depression or thoughts of suicide. You should pay attention to any mental changes, especially sudden changes in your mood, behaviors, thoughts, or feelings. Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any mental changes that are new, worse, or worries you.

The most common side effects of Semaglutide may include: nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation, stomach
(abdomen) pain, headache, tiredness (fatigue), upset stomach, dizziness, feeling bloated, belching, gas, stomach flu, heartburn, and runny nose or sore throat.