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Please note that Rebif comes with the new, thinner 29G needles which are designed to reduce pain associated with injections and thus aid patient adherence. The new needles also include sharper needle point for enhanced and smoother penetration of the skin. Please note that this is an exclusive product and orders cannot be cancelled once ordered. Rebif is a brand name for a product called interferon beta-1a. Interferons belong to a family of proteins that occur naturally in the body. These proteins help direct the body's immune system. Rebif is manufactured through a biotechnology process that makes it similar to the structure of the natural interferon beta-1a produced by the body. The precise way Rebif works is not known. Interferons, like Rebif, have many actions that affect the immune system. Some of these properties are thought to maintain and preserve nerve function. In this way, Rebif may help reduce the damage to the vital components of the central nervous system. Although there is no cure for MS, Rebif has been proven to slow the course of the disease. Rebif is injected just under the skin (subcutaneous injection). Rebif is available in ready-to-use pre-filled syringes, so you don't have to worry about mixing any solutions before injection. No extra syringes, needles, needle assembly, or other materials are needed. Rebif injections should be taken on the same three days a week. Injections should be at least 48 hours apart. Many people choose to take their injections on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, so that they have injection-free weekends. After you decide which three days work best for your lifestyle, stick with those to help make your injections part of your weekly routine. If you miss a dose and it has been two days since your last injection, take your injection as soon as you remember it. Then skip a day and take the next one. If it has been more than three days, contact your doctor. If you accidentally take the wrong dose, call your doctor right away. It is important to plan where on your body you are injecting each time. Do not inject in the same place twice in a row, and be sure to wait at least seven days before using a particular spot again. This will help lessen the chance of having a serious skin reaction at the spot where you inject Rebif. Rotate between injection sites, moving between different areas of the arms, legs, abdomen, and buttocks. It's a good idea to keep a record of your injection sites on a calendar. The best sites for giving yourself an injection are those areas with a layer of fat between the skin and muscle, such as your thighs, the outer surface of your upper arms, your stomach, or buttocks. Do not use the area near your navel or waistline. If you are very thin, use only the thigh or outer surface of the arm for injection. Do not inject Rebif into an area of your body where the skin is irritated, reddened, bruised, infected, or abnormal in any way. Consult your doctor about any such area you find. The syringes are provided in convenient weekly or monthly supply packs. Your doctor will explain what your starting dose should be and how to increase to recommended dose. Like all medications for relapsing MS, there are some side effects with Rebif as well. Before you start taking Rebif, talk with your doctor about the possible benefits and side effects of Rebif. The potential serious side effects include: Depression. This is not uncommon in people with MS. However, if you are feeling noticeably sadder or helpless, or feel like hurting yourself or others, you should tell a family member or friend right away and call your doctor as soon as possible. Inform your doctor if you have ever had any mental illness, including depression, and if you take any medications for depression. Liver problems. Your liver may be affected by taking Rebif and a few patients have developed severe liver injury. Your healthcare provider may ask you to have regular blood tests to make sure that your liver is working properly. If your skin or the whites of your eyes become yellow or if you are bruising easily you should call your doctor right away. Risk to pregnancy. If you become pregnant while taking Rebif you should stop using Rebif immediately and call your doctor. Rebif may cause you to lose your baby (miscarry) or may cause harm to your unborn child. You and your doctor will need to decide whether the potential benefit of taking Rebif is greater than the risks are to your unborn child. Allergic reactions. Some patients taking Rebif have had severe allergic reactions leading to difficulty in breathing and loss of consciousness. If you think you are having an allergic reaction, you should stop therapy immediately and contact your doctor. Allergic reactions can happen after the first dose or after you have taken Rebif many times. Injection-site reactions. Rebif may cause redness, pain, or swelling at the injection site. A few patients have developed infections or an area of severe skin damage (necrosis). If one of your injection sites becomes swollen, painful, or infected and does not heal within a few days, call your doctor. Flu-like symptoms. Most patients have flu-like symptoms (i.e. fever, chills, sweating, muscle aches, and fatigue). Blood abnormalities. Rebif may affect your blood cell counts, so you may be asked to have regular blood tests to make sure your blood cell levels have not dropped. If you have difficulty fighting an infection, feel tired or sluggish, or bruise or bleed easily, contact your doctor. With a little planning and guidance from your healthcare professional, you should be able to manage flu-like symptoms. These tend to be more obvious when you first start taking Rebif. Then they might taper off as your body becomes more accustomed to treatment. Nighttime injections are recommended to allow you to sleep through many of these symptoms. Take a non-prescription pain reliever/fever reducer recommended by your doctor before or after injecting Rebif to help reduce symptoms. Swelling, redness, and irritation may occur at the injection site. Talk to your doctor about how to minimize these reactions. Some suggestions include: -Bring Rebif® (interferon beta-1a) to room temperature to reduce irritation by removing from the refrigerator 1 to 4 hours before injection. -Use the proper injection technique. -Apply ice to area before and after injection. -Gently massage area after injection for at least 2 minutes. This helps disperse medicine and reduce irritation. -Inject only into healthy tissue. -Wait at least 7 days before injecting in the same spot. -Check the site for redness, tenderness, or swelling 2 hours after injection. If you have a skin reaction and it doesn't clear up in a few days, contact your doctor or nurse. Rebif is the only product that has been proven effective in all three of the following key areas: -Significantly reducing the number of active brain lesions and T2 lesion area (or area) as seen on MRI* -Reducing frequency of relapses -Delaying disability progression Rebif should be stored in the refrigerator at 2°–8°C/36°–46°F. Do not freeze. If a refrigerator is not available, Rebif may be stored at or below room temperature (25°C/77°F) for up to 30 days and away from heat and light. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease of the central nervous system (CNS), which is made up of the brain and the spinal cord. The CNS is composed of nerve cells which are linked by fibers called axons. The axons are wrapped in a protective substance called myelin, which allows messages to be sent at high speed. In MS, white blood cells attack and cause inflammation and destruction of the myelin. This damage causes a communication breakdown, which in turn may cause a wide range of symptoms including weakness, fatigue, and vision problems. The exact cause of MS is unknown. Doctors believe MS is an autoimmune disease. In an autoimmune disease the body attacks itself, thinking it is attacking viruses or bacteria. In MS, the body attacks the central nervous system , and the disease eats away at the myelin covering on nerve fibers. Some doctors think MS may be triggered by an infection, probably a virus. But MS is not contagious. Relapsing-remitting (or exacerbating-remitting) MS is the most frequent form of the disease, and is characterized by unpredictable relapses followed by generally complete remission (recovery). During relapses, existing symptoms become more severe and new symptoms may appear. This can last from days to weeks, followed by partial or total remission. Progression toward permanent disability is not frequent. The symptoms of MS vary from individual to individual, and you can get symptoms at any time. Fatigue is one of the most common complaints of people with MS. Other common symptoms include optic neuritis/other vision problems, tingling/numbness, weakness, vertigo/loss of balance, memory loss/depression, sexual dysfunction, pain, spasticity, bladder and bowel problems. There is currently no cure for MS, but there are treatments, called disease modifying drugs (DMDs). Rebif® (interferon beta-1a) is the newest of these treatments. Although the precise mechanism is unknown, Rebif appears to work by moderating the body's immune response to help prevent it from attacking the central nervous system. You should talk to your doctor about your treatment options. While MS itself is not hereditary, a person's chance of getting the disease appears to have a genetic component. Studies of identical twins show that a person has a 33% chance of developing MS if his twin already has it. This suggests that even if a person is genetically prone to MS, two thirds of one's probability of getting the disease has to do with environmental/other factors. Moreover, since each person inherits half of his or her genes from each parent, it is unlikely that both parents will have the genes for susceptibility to MS and pass them along to their children. |
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