Dupixent

Dupixent is an injectable prescription medication used to treat symptoms of eczema in adults. Dupixent belongs to a group of drugs called monoclonal antibodies. These drugs work on the immune system by blocking substances that cause inflammation.  As a result, they help to decrease redness and itchiness of the skin.

This medication comes in a prefilled syringe and is injected under the skin every other week.

Common side effects of Dupixent include injection site reactions, eye inflammation, and mouth or lips sores. Dupixent can also cause eye problems, tell your doctor if you have any new or worsening eye symptoms, such as eye pain or changes in vision.

Dupixent is an injectable prescription medicine used to treat adult patients with moderate-to-severe eczema whose disease is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin (topical), or who cannot use topical therapies. Dupixent can be used with or without topical corticosteroids.

This medication may be prescribed for other uses. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Serious side effects have been reported with Dupixent. See the “Dupixent Precautions” section.

Common side effects of Dupixent include the following:

• Injection site reactions
• Eye or eyelid inflammation
• New or worsening eye problems, including eye pain, blurred vision, or changes in vision
• Mouth or lips sores
• Allergic reactions

This is not a complete list of Dupixent side effects. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Especially tell your doctor if you take:

• Live vaccines

This is not a complete list of Dupixent drug interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Serious side effects have been reported with Dupixent including:

• Hypersensitivity (allergic) reactions. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have some or all of the following symptoms of hypersensitivity reactions.
  • swelling of the face, eyelids, tongue, or throat
  • difficulty swallowing or breathing
  • tightness in the chest or throat
  • rash
  • hives
  • itching
  • fever
  • joint pain
• Eye problems. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any new or worsening eye problems, including eye pain or changes in vision.

Medications can interact with certain foods. In some cases, this may be harmful and your doctor may advise you to avoid certain foods. In the case Dupixent, there are no specific foods that you must exclude from your diet when receiving this medication.

Before taking Dupixent, tell your doctor about all of your medical conditions. Especially tell your doctor if you:

• are allergic to Dupixent or its active ingredient dupilumab
• have or have ever had
  • asthma
  • eye problems
  • paracitic infection (infection with worms that live inside the body)
• are scheduled to receive any vaccinations. You should not receive a “live vaccine” if you are treated with Dupixent.
• are pregnant or plan to become pregnant
• are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. If you have asthma and are taking asthma medicines, do not change or stop your asthma medicine without talking to your healthcare provider.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. 

There are no well-done studies that have been done in humans Dupixent. In animal studies, pregnant animals were given this medication, and the babies did not show any medical issues related to this medication.

Tell your doctor if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed.

It is not known if Dupixent crosses into human milk. Because many medications can cross into human milk and because of the possibility for serious adverse reactions in nursing infants with use of this medication, a choice should be made whether to stop nursing or stop the use of this medication. Your doctor and you will decide if the benefits outweigh the risk of using Dupixent.

• See the detailed ′′Instructions for Use′′ that comes with Dupixent for information on how to prepare and inject Dupixent and how to properly store and throw away (dispose of) used Dupixent pre-filled syringes.
• Use Dupixent exactly as prescribed by your healthcare provider.
• Dupixent comes as a single-dose pre-filled syringe with needle shield.
• Dupixent is given as an injection under the skin (subcutaneous injection).
• If your healthcare provider decides that you or a caregiver can give the injections of Dupixent, you or your caregiver should receive training on the right way to prepare and inject Dupixent. Do not try to inject Dupixent until you have been shown the right way by your healthcare provider.
• If you miss a dose of Dupixent, give the injection within 7 days from the missed dose, then continue with the original schedule. If the missed dose is not given within 7 days, wait until the next scheduled dose to give your Dupixent injection. 

Take this medication exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully.

The dose your doctor recommends may be based on the following:

• the condition being treated
• other medical conditions you have
• other medications you are taking
• how you respond to this medication
• your weight
• your height
• your age
• your gender

The recommended dose of Dupixent for adult patients is an initial dose of 600 mg (two 300 mg injections), followed by 300 mg given every other week.

If you inject more Dupixent than prescribed, call your healthcare provider right away. 

• Store Dupixent syringes refrigerated at 36°F to 46°F (2°C to 8°C) in the original carton to protect from light.
• If necessary, syringes may be kept at room temperature up to 77°F (25°C) for a maximum of 14 days. After removal from the refrigerator, Dupixent must be used within 14 days or discarded. 
• Do not expose the syringe to heat or direct sunlight. 
• Do not freeze or shake.