Bydureon

What is Bydureon?

Bydureon is a pre-filled injectable treatment that helps to lower your blood sugar when you have type-2 diabetes. Bydureon is only prescribed as an add-on treatment to be used in combination with other blood sugar lowering medicines. This means that you’ll only use Bydureon if you have already tried other treatments which haven’t worked to control your blood sugar levels.

Type-2 diabetes is a condition that usually develops gradually in adulthood, as a result of you no longer producing as much insulin as you need to, or your cells losing sensitivity to insulin. 

Insulin is an essential hormone for moving sugar from your blood into your cells for it to be used as energy. When your body doesn’t produce or utilise insulin correctly, high levels of glucose (sugar) build up in your bloodstream, which is called hyperglycaemia. Being hyperglycaemic for extended periods of time increases your risk of developing long-term health problems.

How does Bydureon work?

When you eat, your body releases hormones called incretins, which stimulate your pancreas to secrete insulin. Bydureon belongs to a class of medicines called GLP-1 agonists, also called ‘incretin mimetics’. This essentially means that when you use Bydureon it mimics the action of incretins – stimulating insulin secretion from your pancreas in response to food to help lower your blood sugar levels. ^[1]

Bydureon is a prolonged-release, long acting treatment. This means that it stays active in your system for a while after you take it. So you only have to use it once a week, and it keeps working to control your blood sugar until you use it again a week later.

What doses of Bydureon are there?

Bydureon is only available in one strength: 2mg, of which you should use only once a week. As a result, you’ll be advised to try a different or additional treatment if Bydureon isn’t providing sufficient blood sugar control for you at this strength.

How to use Bydureon

You should always use Bydureon exactly as instructed to by our doctor. If you haven’t used it before, you should be shown how to by a physician before it can be prescribed to you. Your medicine will also come with a leaflet which will give you detailed, step-by-step instructions on how to use it.

Bydureon should be stored in your fridge and injected once a week, with or without food, at any time of day. Bydureon should be injected subcutaneously (under the skin) into your stomach, upper leg or the back of your upper arm. Don’t inject it into a vein or muscle.

You can use Bydureon in the same area of your body each week, you’ll just need to choose a different injection site within that area.

To use Bydureon:

• Remove one pen from your fridge and rest it on a flat surface for at least 15 minutes. 
• Check the expiration date.
• Wash your hands and choose your injection site (stomach, thigh, or back of the upper arm).
• Shake the pen vigorously for 15 seconds or more to mix the suspension
• Only use the treatment if it is white to off-white, evenly mixed and cloudy
• If you see white medicine on the top, sides or bottom of the window, the solution is not correctly mixed – shake it again until it is correctly mixed
• Once the solution is correctly mixed, use the injection straight away by unlocking the autoinjector and unscrewing the orange cap.
• To inject, push the autoinjector against your skin. You’ll hear a click when the injection begins.
• Hold the autoinjector against your skin for 15 seconds to make sure you get your full dose.
• Use a new pen for each injection. Throw away any used pens correctly and immediately after using them, according to the instructions of your clinician.

How long does it take Bydureon to work?

Bydureon should get to work immediately after you take it, but it will take around 6-7 weeks for it to become most effective in your system. 

As type-2 diabetes doesn’t always give you obvious symptoms, you might not feel much different from taking Bydureon, but this doesn’t mean that it isn’t working to lower your blood sugar levels. You’ll need to keep taking your treatment in order to support your long-term health.

What should I do if I make a mistake when using Bydureon?

If you accidentally use more Bydureon than you should, seek medical help straight away.

If you forget to take a dose of Bydureon, you can take it when you remember – as long as it’s not less than three days until your next scheduled dose. If there’s only one or two days until your next scheduled dose then skip the missed one and continue as normal. 

You could also change the day that you use it on in order to make sure you have at least a three day gap between doses. Don’t use it more than once in any three day period.

If you’re not sure whether you’ve taken the full dose of Bydureon, don’t inject another dose of the treatment. Just wait until the following week as planned.