What is epogen

Click here for a worksheet. Your healthcare provider will talk with you about these risks. Blood clots. Have high blood pressure that is not controlled uncontrolled hypertension. This can happen even if you have never had high blood pressure before. Epoetin alfa injection products also should not be used to treat people who are able and willing to donate blood before surgery so that this blood can be replaced in their bodies during or after surgery.

Epoetin alfa injection products cannot be used in place of a red blood cell transfusion to treat severe anemia and has not been shown to improve tiredness or poor well-being that may be caused by anemia. Epoetin alfa products are in a class of medications called erythropoiesis-stimulating agents ESAs. They work by causing the bone marrow soft tissue inside the bones where blood is made to make more red blood cells.

Epoetin alfa injection products come as a solution liquid to inject subcutaneously just under the skin or intravenously into a vein. It is usually injected one to three times weekly.

When epoetin alfa injection products are used to decrease the risk that blood transfusions will be required due to surgery, it is sometimes injected once daily for 10 days before surgery, on the day of surgery and for 4 days after surgery.

Alternatively, epoetin alfa injection products are sometimes injected once weekly, beginning 3 weeks before surgery and on the day of surgery. Your doctor will start you on a low dose of an epoetin alfa injection product and adjust your dose depending on your lab results and how you are feeling, usually not more than once every month. Your doctor may also tell you to stop using an epoetin alfa injection product for a time.

Follow these instructions carefully. Epoetin alfa injection products will help control your anemia only as long as you continue to use it.

It may take 2—6 weeks or longer before you feel the full benefit of an epoetin alfa injection product. Do not stop using an epoetin alfa injection product without talking to your doctor. Epoetin alfa injection products may be given by a doctor or nurse, or you may be told to inject the medication at home. If you will be injecting the medication at home, follow the directions on your prescription label carefully and ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any part you do not understand.

Use an epoetin alfa injection product exactly as directed. To help you remember to use an epoetin alfainjection product, mark a calendar to keep track of when you are to receive a dose.

Do not use more or less of it or use it more often than prescribed by your doctor. If you are using an epoetin alfa injection product at home, a healthcare provider will show you how to inject the medication. Be sure that you understand these directions. Before you use an epoetin alfaproduct for the first time, you and the person who will be giving the injections should read the manufacturer's information for the patient that comes with it.

Ask your healthcare provider if you have any questions about where on your body you should inject the medication, how to give the injection, what type of syringe to use, or how to dispose of used needles and syringes after you inject the medication. Always keep a spare syringe and needle on hand. Do not shake an epoetin alfa injection product.

If you shake the medication, it may look foamy and should not be used. You can inject an epoetin alfa injection product just under the skin anywhere on the outer area of your upper arms, middle of the front thighs, stomach except for a 2-inch [5-centimeter] area around the navel [belly button] , or outer area of the buttocks.

Do not inject an epoetin alfa injection product into a spot that is tender, red, bruised, hard, or has scars or stretch marks. Choose a new spot each time you inject the medication, as directed by your doctor. If you are being treated with dialysis treatment to remove waste from the blood when the kidneys are not working , your doctor may tell you to inject the medication into your venous access port.

Ask your doctor if you have any questions about how to inject your medication. Always look at the solution before you inject it.

Be sure that the vial is labeled with the correct name and strength of medication and an expiration date that has not passed.

Also check that the solution is clear and colorless and does not contain lumps, flakes, or particles. If there are any problems with your medication, call your pharmacist and do not inject it. This medication may be prescribed for other uses. Talk to your doctor about the risks of using this medication for your condition.

Your doctor may prescribe a special diet to help control your blood pressure and to help increase your iron levels so that an epoetin alfa injection product can work as well as possible. Follow these directions carefully and ask your doctor or dietician if you have any questions. Call your doctor to ask what to do if you miss a dose of an epoetin injection product.

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