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What Causes Dizziness And Nausea After Taking Copaxone?
I am taking Copaxone, 40 ml 3 times a week. On monday the injection did not seem to be totally discharged so i took another dose. Today I feel awful..dizzy, lightheaded, nausea, and just off balance. FYI i do not generally have any symptoms of my MS condition. Could I have overdosed and could these feelings be related to that?
Mon, 24 Dec 2018
Hello,
There could be a lot of possibilities for you to feel this way:
1.) Firstly, as suggested by you too, it could be an overdose of the injection since it is not recommended to take an additional injection if you feel that the first one has not completely discharged.
2.) Secondly, COPAXONE is for subcutaneous use only. Please check that you are adopting right procedure to take the injection.
Before injecting medication, inspect your skin to make sure there’s no bruising, burns, swelling, hardness, or irritation in the area. Alternate injection sites to prevent damage to an area with repeated injections.
Then you should clean the skin with an alcohol swab. Let the alcohol dry thoroughly before doing the injection. Tap the syringe to push any bubbles to the top and gently depress the plunger to push the air bubbles out.
Take a big pinch of skin between your thumb and index finger and hold it. (Your thumb and forefinger should be about an inch and a half apart.) This pulls the fatty tissue away from the muscle and makes the injection easier.
Inject the needle into the pinched skin at a 90-degree angle. You should do this quickly, but without great force.
If you have very little fat on your body, you may need to inject the needle at a 45-degree angle to the skin. Slowly puch the plunger to inject the medication. Let go of the pinched skin and withdraw the needle.
3.) Another possibility is that you got hypersensitivity reaction to the drug. In that case, you can undergo hypersensitivity testing with a smaller amount to check for that in a harmless way but only in the supervision of your physician.
4.) Also, check for the expiry date of the injection since the expired or contaminated product may cause untoward effects.
5.) Also, check that you are using properly stored injection since as per instructions:
Store COPAXONE in the refrigerator between 36°F to 46°F (2°C to 8°C) and when you are not able to refrigerate COPAXONE, you may store it for up to 1 month at room temperature between 59°F to 86°F (15°C to 30°C). Also, Protect COPAXONE from light or high temperature.
Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.
Take care
Regards,
Dr Maninder, General & Family Physician
There could be a lot of possibilities for you to feel this way:
1.) Firstly, as suggested by you too, it could be an overdose of the injection since it is not recommended to take an additional injection if you feel that the first one has not completely discharged.
2.) Secondly, COPAXONE is for subcutaneous use only. Please check that you are adopting right procedure to take the injection.
Before injecting medication, inspect your skin to make sure there’s no bruising, burns, swelling, hardness, or irritation in the area. Alternate injection sites to prevent damage to an area with repeated injections.
Then you should clean the skin with an alcohol swab. Let the alcohol dry thoroughly before doing the injection. Tap the syringe to push any bubbles to the top and gently depress the plunger to push the air bubbles out.
Take a big pinch of skin between your thumb and index finger and hold it. (Your thumb and forefinger should be about an inch and a half apart.) This pulls the fatty tissue away from the muscle and makes the injection easier.
Inject the needle into the pinched skin at a 90-degree angle. You should do this quickly, but without great force.
If you have very little fat on your body, you may need to inject the needle at a 45-degree angle to the skin. Slowly puch the plunger to inject the medication. Let go of the pinched skin and withdraw the needle.
3.) Another possibility is that you got hypersensitivity reaction to the drug. In that case, you can undergo hypersensitivity testing with a smaller amount to check for that in a harmless way but only in the supervision of your physician.
4.) Also, check for the expiry date of the injection since the expired or contaminated product may cause untoward effects.
5.) Also, check that you are using properly stored injection since as per instructions:
Store COPAXONE in the refrigerator between 36°F to 46°F (2°C to 8°C) and when you are not able to refrigerate COPAXONE, you may store it for up to 1 month at room temperature between 59°F to 86°F (15°C to 30°C). Also, Protect COPAXONE from light or high temperature.
Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.
Take care
Regards,
Dr Maninder, General & Family Physician
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