Mounjaro is a new and effective treatment for type 2 diabetes. It is available in the form of an injection and should be taken once per week to help manage blood sugar levels.
Type 2 diabetes is a progressive and long-term (chronic) condition when your body does not make enough insulin or develops insulin resistance. As a result, your blood sugar levels become high. Medications for type 2 diabetes work to maintain healthy blood glucose levels.
Mounjaro is a type of injectable medication that helps manage diabetes. It contains the active ingredient tirzepatide and works best when you take it once per week.
Mounjaro helps your body to:
release insulin in response to the food intake when blood glucose is high
remove excess sugar from the blood
stop the liver from making and releasing sugar
slow down how quickly food leaves the stomach
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A healthcare professional can help you choose the injection site that is best for you. You need to inject Mounjaro subcutaneously. This means you must administer the injection into the layer of fat just below the skin.
There are two preferable areas of the body where you can inject Mounjaro injection. This is your abdominal area or the area around your thighs.
It is possible to inject it into the back of your arm. But to safely administer in this area, you will need assistance from another person.
It is also important to keep rotating your injection site every week. This does not mean you have to choose a different area of your body, just that you should choose a different site within your preferred area.
How to prepare the injection
Mounjaro comes in single-use pre-filled pens, meaning there is little preparation that you need. You can store it for up to 21 days at room temperature (up to 86°F or 30°C), but you can also store the pens in the fridge between 36–46°F (2–8°C). Check each dose before you use it to ensure that it hasn’t passed the expiry date and is safe to use.
You should inject Mounjaro once a week, at any time of day. It is important to ensure you stick to a schedule. If you wish to alter the day upon which you use Mounjaro for any reason, ensure there are at least 3 days between doses.
First, you should inspect the label of the pen. Ensure that you have the right medication and the correct dosage of Mounjaro in your prefilled pen.
Mounjaro comes in different strengths, which include:
2.5 milligrams (mg)/ 0.5 milliliter (mL)
5 mg/0.5 mL
7.5 mg/0.5 mL
10 mg/0.5 mL
12.5 mg/0.5 mL
15 mg/0.5 mL
Ensure checking your prefilled pen it is NOT:
expired (not passed the expiry date)
frozen
yellow in color
cloudy
containing visible particles or lumps
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), if you are also taking insulin medication injections for type 2 diabetes, then you cannot use them at the same time as Mounjaro. Both medications need separate injections and should not be mixed into the same syringe.
How to inject the medication safely
Before you begin, thoroughly wash your hands.
Once you are ready to take your dose, you should follow this process:
choose a suitable injection site
pull off the base cap
place the clear base on the skin and unlock the pen
press and hold the purple injection button for 10 seconds until it delivers the entire dose
While injecting, you would hear 2 clicks. The first click signals that the dose has started going inside the body. The second click indicates the dose has completely gone inside the body.
If you don’t hear the second click, you should look for the gray plunger that will become visible at the clear base, which means that the complete dose has gone inside the body.
It is important to know how to inject Mounjaro safely to ensure that you:
maintain a steady level of blood sugar by taking the correct full dose
minimize the risk of infection
reduce pain and discomfort
minimize side effects
If you are unsure about how to inject Mounjaro, talk with a healthcare professional. They can help you understand the best way to administer the drug.
How might you feel after injecting Mounjaro?
Everyone can experience different side effects when taking Mounjaro.
If you miss a dose, you should take the missed dose as soon as possible and within 4 days, or 96 hours, of the missed dose.
For example, if you miss a dose on Monday, make sure you take that dose by Friday. But if more than 4 days have passed, you should wait to take the next dose on the regular scheduled day.
Summary
Mounjaro is a new weekly single-dose treatment for type 2 diabetes. Studies show that it is also helpful in weight loss.
It’s important to inject Mounjaro safely so that it doesn’t negatively affect your health through infection, injury, or mismanagement of your blood sugar levels.
If you are unsure about how to inject Mounjaro, talk with a healthcare professional. They can help you understand the best way to administer the drug.
FDA approves Lilly's Mounjaro (tirzepatide) injection, the first and only GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist for the treatment of adults with type 2 diabetes. (2022). https://investor.lilly.com/node/47231/pdf
