INFORMATION ABOUT
INJECTING COPAXONE^®

Teva Shared Solutions^® Digital Services delivers information you need to know about how to inject COPAXONE^® (glatiramer acetate injection) in one place, with tips on storage, disposal, and travel, too.

Watch our COPAXONE^® injection video for step-by-step instructions:

How to inject COPAXONE^®:

Whether you are starting injections for the first time with your COPAXONE^® prescription, or switching to COPAXONE^® from another therapy:

1
Ready to begin? Take the COPAXONE^® prefilled syringe out of the refrigerator at least 20 minutes before you inject.¹ Injecting when COPAXONE^® is at room temperature can help avoid discomfort.
2
Apply a warm compress to the injection site (with a cloth barrier between the warm compress and bare skin) for 5 minutes to help relax the tissue before cleaning the site and injecting.
3
Next, follow proper injection technique. See video above or refer to the full Prescribing Information.
4
After the injection, use a cold pack (with a cloth barrier between the cold pack and bare skin) on the injection site for up to 1 minute.

While the injection experience is different for everyone, and you should always follow your doctor’s recommendations, rotating injection sites is important to help keep your skin healthy and reduce your risk of injection site reactions.¹

HOW LONG CAN COPAXONE^® BE LEFT OUT OF THE REFRIGERATOR?¹

Keep your supply of COPAXONE^® prefilled syringes refrigerated and protected from light when not injecting. The ideal storage temperature is between 36^°F and 46^°F (2^°C-8^°C). Avoid leaving your COPAXONE^® in a hot or cold car.

When traveling with COPAXONE^® or when you are not able to refrigerate, prefilled syringes may be stored at room temperature between 59^°F and 86^°F (15^°C-30^°C), for up to 1 month. Discard after 1 month.

What happens if COPAXONE^® freezes?¹

Never freeze your COPAXONE^® prefilled syringes. If they do accidentally freeze, do not use, and dispose of your COPAXONE^® in a proper container.

How do I dispose of COPAXONE^® Prefilled syringes?¹

Remember to properly dispose of used syringes into a hard-walled container immediately after you inject for safe needle disposal. Consider using a needle clip device, available online and at many retail pharmacies, which snaps your used needle off the syringe and houses it in a small device that can hold hundreds of needles before requiring disposal. Check with your local health department, doctor's office, or pharmacist for guidance on how to follow local biohazard regulations for disposing of the needle clip device. Always keep your waste container in an area of your home that is out of the reach of children and pets.

How do I manage traveling with COPAXONE^®?

Download the Travel Planning Guide from Teva Shared Solutions^® Digital Services to help you prepare for any upcoming travel adventures.

Packing COPAXONE^® for traveling

Stay prepared for unexpected changes in plans by keeping extra supplies on hand, including syringes, cotton balls, and alcohol wipes, protected in sealed plastic bags. Avoid unnecessary delays by bringing your current prescription label with you; the label should match your name as it appears on your government-issued ID.
Flying with COPAXONE^®

Keep your COPAXONE^® prefilled syringes in your carry-on luggage, so they’re easily available when going through airport security and safely in your possession if your luggage gets lost or damaged. Rest assured, your COPAXONE^® should not be affected when passing through X-ray security measures at the airport. For current regulations, contact the Transportation Security Administration.

Injection guide

Affordable access

Use

COPAXONE^® 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.

Important Safety Information

Do not use COPAXONE^® if you are allergic to glatiramer acetate or mannitol.

Serious side effects may happen right after or within minutes after you inject COPAXONE^® at any time during your course of treatment. Call your doctor 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 heart beat; 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 doctor tells you to.

You can have chest pain as part of an 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 COPAXONE^®. Call your doctor right away if you have chest pain while using COPAXONE^®.

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 COPAXONE^®. 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 following your doctor’s instructions for how to use COPAXONE^® and choosing a different injection area each time you use COPAXONE^®.

Liver problems, including liver failure, can occur with COPAXONE^®. 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.

The most common side effects of COPAXONE^® include redness, pain, swelling, itching, or a lump at the injection site; rash; shortness of breath; flushing; and chest pain.

Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. These are not all the possible side effects of COPAXONE^®. For more information, ask your doctor or pharmacist. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.

You are encouraged to report side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-10881-800-FDA-1088.

Please read the Patient Information in the full Prescribing Information.

Reference:

COPAXONE^® (glatiramer acetate injection) Current Prescribing Information Parsippany, NJ. Teva Neuroscience, Inc.

Injections for 3-times-a-week COPAXONE^® 40 mg must be at least 48 hours apart.

INFORMATION ABOUT INJECTING COPAXONE®

Watch our COPAXONE® injection video for step-by-step instructions:

How to inject COPAXONE®:

HOW LONG CAN COPAXONE® BE LEFT OUT OF THE REFRIGERATOR?1

What happens if COPAXONE® freezes?1

How do I dispose of COPAXONE® Prefilled syringes?1

How do I manage traveling with COPAXONE®?