USE
GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION is a prescription medicine that is used to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), to include clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting disease, and active secondary progressive disease, in adults. It is not known if GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION is safe and effective in children under 18 years of age.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
Do not take GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION if you are allergic to glatiramer acetate or mannitol.
Serious side effects may happen right after or within minutes after you inject GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION at any time during your course of treatment. Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these immediate post-injection reaction symptoms including redness to your cheeks or other parts of the body (flushing); chest pain; fast heartbeat; anxiety; breathing problems or tightness in your throat; or swelling, rash, hives, or itching. If you have symptoms of an immediate post-injection reaction, do not give yourself more injections until a healthcare provider tells you to.
Chest pain may occur either as part of the immediate post-injection reaction or by itself. This type of chest pain usually lasts a few minutes and can begin around 1 month after you start using GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION. Call your healthcare provider right away if you experience chest pain.
Damage to the fatty tissue just under your skin’s surface (lipoatrophy) and, rarely, death of your skin tissue (necrosis) can happen when you use glatiramer acetate injection. Damage to the fatty tissue under your skin can cause a “dent” at the injection site that may not go away. You can reduce your chance of developing these problems by:
Liver problems, including liver failure, can occur with GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION. Call your healthcare provider right away if you have symptoms, such as nausea, loss of appetite, tiredness, dark colored urine and pale stools, yellowing of your skin or the white part of your eye, bleeding more easily than normal, confusion, or sleepiness.
Some glatiramer acetate products can be used with an optional compatible autoinjector. Compatible autoinjectors are supplied separately if available, but the availability of compatible autoinjectors may change with time. Check with your healthcare provider when you fill or refill your medicine to make sure the autoinjector you have is meant to be used with your glatiramer acetate product. If you use the wrong autoinjector, you might not get the correct dose of your medicine.
The most common side effects in studies of GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION are skin problems at your injection site, including redness, pain, swelling, itching, or a lump at the site of injection, rash, shortness of breath, flushing (vasodilation), and chest pain. These are not all the possible side effects of GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION. For a complete list, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist. Tell your healthcare provider about any side effects that you have while taking GLATIRAMER ACETATE INJECTION.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
