Saxenda® is a prescription injectable solution for weight loss in overweight adults. The medicine acts on certain areas of the brain that regulate appetite – this creates an increased feeling of satiety while reducing the feeling of hunger.

Saxenda® is a so-called pre-filled pen, a small syringe that patients can use very easily and safely every day.

The medicine contains the active ingredient liraglutide. This is similar to a naturally occurring appetite hormone (glucagon-like peptide-1; GLP-1) that helps the human body regulate feelings of hunger.

Saxenda® works like GLP-1 by inhibiting appetite via certain receptors in the brain, which can cause users to consume fewer calories – and in turn, lose weight.

Saxenda® is suitable for adults aged 18 and over who meet any of these criteria:

• Obesity: BMI of 30 kg/m2 or higher
• Overweight in combination with weight-related comorbidities: BMI of 27 kg/m2 to just under 30 kg/m2 as well as diabetes, increased blood lipid levels, high blood pressure, or nocturnal breathing problems (sleep apnea)

What is BMI?

BMI means body mass index. This is a measure for evaluating weight about height. You can calculate your BMI yourself: body weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. However, this formula does not take gender into account. You can also choose to use a BMI calculator or ask a doctor for help. If you are interested in treatment with Saxenda® by the doctors at ZAVA, you only need to state your height and weight during the consultation – your BMI will be determined by our doctors.

You must always use the medicine exactly as your doctor prescribed. If you are unsure, your doctor or pharmacist can help you. The doctors at ZAVA can also advise you free of charge. To do this, simply use the message function in your patient account.

You start with the lowest dose, which usually has to be increased gradually over the next 5 weeks. Your doctor will tell you exactly how much Saxenda® you should use weekly. As a rule, these are the following dosages:

• Week 1: 0.6 mg once daily
• Week 2: 1.2 mg once daily
• Week 3: 1.8 mg once daily
• Week 4: 2.4 mg once daily
• Week 5: 3.0 mg once daily

You will maintain the maximum dose of 3.0 mg until the end of your treatment. Your doctor will decide when the treatment is considered successful.

Important: Therapy with Saxenda® will only be continued if it works. This means that patients must have lost at least 4% of their starting weight after 12 weeks of administration of the highest dose. The doctor checks the success of the treatment at regular intervals.

Use Saxenda® daily; The time can be chosen individually to suit your lifestyle, but ideally, the injection should always be injected at approximately the same time. You can decide for yourself whether you want to eat or drink something while using it, but there is no medical necessity.

Saxenda® is an injection that is injected under the skin using a pre-filled pen.

The following parts of the body are particularly suitable for this:

• Front of the abdomen
• Front of thighs
• upper arm

Be careful not to always choose the same puncture site. Detailed operating instructions can be found in the package insert. Your doctor or pharmacist is also available to help you if you have any questions or uncertainties.

Step 1: Preparing the pre-filled pen

Important: Use a new needle for each injection, making sure it is not damaged or bent.

• If you are using multiple injectable medications, you should first check that it is the right pen.
• Remove the pen cap.
• Look at the Saxenda® solution through the viewing window of the pre-filled pen: Is it colorless and clear? If it looks cloudy or otherwise changed, you should stop using the pen.
• Remove the paper tab from a new needle.
• Now you need to push the needle straight onto the pen and turn it until it is tight.
• The outer needle cap must be removed. Make sure you don’t throw them away but save them for later.
• In the last step, pull off the inner needle cap. You can dispose of these. You may now see a drop of liquid on the needle – but this is normal.

Step 2: Check the flow on a new pen (if you are already using the prefilled pen, go to step 3)

• Turn the ring at the end of the pen (dose setting ring) until the display shows the control symbol (2 dots and a long line).
• Now it is best to hold the Saxenda® pen with two fingers so that the needle points upwards. Use your thumb to press the button at the bottom of the pen. Keep it pressed until the display returns to “0”. 1 drop of solution appears at the tip of the needle.

Important: If you don’t see a drop at the end of the needle, repeat steps 2 up to 6 times. If no drop still appears, change the needle and repeat the step. If you are unable to complete the process successfully, your pen may be damaged. Use a new one. You must check the flow. Otherwise, you may not be able to take the prescribed dose, which will result in Saxenda® not working.

Step 3: Dose setting

• Turn the ring at the end of your pen (dose setting ring) until you can see your desired dose on the display. You can easily make corrections by turning it forward or backward.

Step 4: Inject a dose

• Insert the needle into the skin on the front of your stomach or thigh, or into your upper arm. The process usually doesn’t hurt, you’ll only feel a prick at most. Make sure that you can see the dose display and that you do not always apply Saxenda® in the same place.
• Now press the button at the end of the pen until the display shows “0”. This is confirmed with a click.
• Do not pull the needle out again immediately, but count slowly to 6. Only then can you remove the needle.

If you see 1 drop of liquid at the end after the injection, that’s not a problem. If the solution comes out of the syringe, you have not given yourself the correct dose. In this case, ask your doctor or pharmacist for advice.

What do I do if no “0” appears on the dose display despite holding it down?

If you can’t see a “0”, you probably used a damaged or clogged needle. This means that you have not given yourself any medication at all. Remove the needle as described in step 5 and then start again with step 1.

Step 5: After the injection

• Place the outer needle cap back on the needle and press it into place.
• Unscrew the needle and discard it.
• Put the pen cap back on the pre-filled pen. This will protect the solution from light.

The exact step-by-step instructions, including pictures for correct use, can also be found in the package insert.

By the way: If you need new needles during treatment with Saxenda®, you can request them from us regardless of the medication. The same applies to the cannula bucket: If it is full and ready for disposal, you can easily get a new one from ZAVA.

➤ Request needles and/or cannula buckets here

If you remember that you have forgotten Saxenda® within 12 hours of the planned application, you can simply do so.

If more than 12 hours have passed, skip the missed dose and take the medication at the next scheduled time. Do not increase the dose.

If more than 48 hours have passed, you should contact your doctor. In this case, you must start again with the smallest dose of Saxenda®, which is again increased step by step.

Contact your doctor immediately or have yourself driven to the nearest hospital. An overdose of Saxenda® can lead to nausea, vomiting, and/or hypoglycemia.

Please talk to your doctor if you want to stop treatment with Saxenda®. If necessary, they can recommend an alternative to you.

No. It is not clear whether Saxenda® will harm your unborn child or whether the medicine can pass into breast milk. Talk to your doctor if you want to become pregnant and use Saxenda®.

Saxenda® must not be used if you are allergic to the active ingredient liraglutide or any of the other ingredients.

There are also other warnings and precautionary measures that you should take into account if you suffer from certain illnesses or conditions:

• Severe heart failure: Use is not recommended.
• Severe stomach or intestinal diseases: Use is not recommended.
• Kidney or liver problems: Your doctor will advise you. There is not enough experience with Saxenda® in this context.
• 75 years old or older: Use is not recommended. There is not enough experience with Saxenda® in this context.
• Thyroid diseases or inflammation of the pancreas: Talk to your doctor.

For the complete list of all contraindications and warnings, please see the package insert.

Like all other medicines, Saxenda® can cause side effects that may or may not occur. If you experience any undesirable side effects, our doctors will be happy to help you using the free message function in your patient account.

Very common side effects (may affect more than 1 in 10 people):

• Diarrhea
• constipation
• nausea
• Vomit

However, these usually disappear on their own in the first few weeks of use.

Important: Due to side effects such as diarrhea and vomiting, there is a risk of losing body fluid or becoming dehydrated, especially at the beginning of treatment. Therefore, make sure to drink plenty of fluids.

Common side effects (may affect up to 1 in 10 people):

• Gastrointestinal problems (e.g. stomach pain, inflammation of the gastric mucosa, upper abdominal discomfort, heartburn, indigestion, flatulence, feeling of fullness)
• Dry mouth
• fatigue
• weakness
• dizziness
• altered sense of taste
• Sleep problems
• Reactions at the injection site (e.g. itching, pain, rash)
• low blood sugar
• Gallstones

If you experience serious side effects, you should stop treatment with Saxenda®-Pen immediately and consult a doctor immediately. These include:

• Severe allergic reactions (have been reported rarely): Symptoms of this can include breathing problems, rapid heartbeat, and swelling in the face and neck area.
• Inflammation of the pancreas (has been reported occasionally): Signs include persistent and severe abdominal pain that may radiate to the back, nausea, and vomiting.

Further side effects can be found in the package leaflet.

Some users notice that bruising forms at the injection site after using Saxenda®. This is harmless – the bruises usually disappear on their own after a few days. However, be careful not to always use the pen in the same place.

If you experience unwanted side effects, your doctor or pharmacist is the right person to contact. This also applies if the symptoms are not included in the package leaflet. Alternatively, you can also report side effects directly to the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices.

Saxenda® can interact with other medications. Therefore, always inform your doctor before use if you need to take other medicines at the same time.

This is especially true if you

• Take diabetes medications that are sulfonylureas (e.g. glibenclamide or glimepride).
• Use insulin. This can lead to hypoglycemia. In this case, your doctor may need to adjust the insulin dose.
• taking anticoagulant medicines such as warfarin.

Interactions with food or beverages are currently not known.

The active ingredient in Saxenda® is liraglutide. Each pre-filled pen contains 18 mg.

Other ingredients:

• Sodium monohydrogen phosphate dihydrate (Ph.Eur.)
• Propylene glycol
• phenol
• Hydrochloric acid 36%
• Sodium hydroxide
• Water

People with lactose intolerance are allowed to use the medicine. It is unclear whether Saxenda® is suitable for vegans or people of the Muslim faith.

Yes – As an alternative to Saxenda®, patients can also request treatment with Wegovy®. This is also a medication that is injected under the skin using an injection pen. Unlike Saxenda®, Wegovy® is only intended to be used once a week and not daily.

The active ingredient in Wegovy®, semaglutide, belongs – like liraglutide in Saxenda® – to a group of drugs that have a similar effect to the body’s GLP-1. They reduce the feeling of hunger and thus contribute to weight loss. Studies have shown that users lost an average of between 10 and 15% of their initial weight after a treatment period of 68 weeks.

Would you like to switch from Saxenda® to Wegovy®? In this case, you can contact us using the free message function in the patient account. Our doctors will be happy to advise you on any questions you may have about a possible change. Saxenda® is usually discontinued before you start Wegovy® at the lowest dosage. The dose can then be gradually increased according to a fixed treatment plan.

How should Saxenda® be stored?

When storing, keep these points in mind:

• inaccessible to children
• before the first use: in the refrigerator; do not freeze or near the freezer compartment
• after the 1st application: below 30 °C or in the refrigerator; do not freeze, not near the freezer compartment

How should the product be disposed of?

Ask your pharmacist how to throw away medicine if you no longer use it. Do not throw Saxenda® into household waste or wastewater.

It is best to use the cannula bucket, which can be ordered separately, for used needles: it can only be opened to throw something in – this reduces the risk of injury in the household. You can then simply dispose of the full bucket with the residual waste.

What does Saxenda® look like?

Saxenda® is a colorless, clear solution for injection in a pre-filled pen. Each pen contains 3 ml of solution, which can be administered in different doses.

In which pack sizes is Saxenda® available?

Saxenda® is available with 1, 3, or 5 pens. Not all pack sizes may be marketed.

Information about the manufacturer

Pharmaceutical entrepreneur and manufacturer

Novo Nordisk A/S

Novo Alle DK-2880

Bagsværd Denmark