Victoza

What is Victoza?

Victoza was an injectable treatment for type-2 diabetes,containing the active ingredient liraglutide. It was discontinued in October 2024 after 12 months of stock issues.

When your blood sugar was too high, Victoza helped to lower it. It could be used with or instead of other diabetes medication like metformin.

Victoza also slowed the journey of food through your stomach, which helped to regulate your blood sugar further. Eating a healthy diet, along with losing weight, can help your blood sugar levels stay balanced. Increasing your activity levels and reducing your fat, sugar and salt intake, along with using treatments like Victoza, can improve your health in the long-term and help you keep on top of your diabetes.^[1]

How does Victoza work?

The active ingredient in Victoza was liraglutide. Sugar is extracted from the bloodstream by the hormone insulin which is produced by the pancreas. Liraglutide encourages the production of insulin by the pancreas, resulting in more sugar being removed from your blood.

Liraglutide also slows the speed at which your stomach empties, which means that the sugar from the food is taken in at a slower rate, helping to decrease spikes in your blood sugar levels. This slowing of the digestion process also helps make your brain think that the stomach is full for longer, which helps with healthy eating and weight loss. ^[2]

What doses of Victoza are there?

The amount of Victoza used varied from person to person. The starting dose was always 0.6 mg once a day, for one week. This dosage could be increased to 1.2 mg once a day, under the guidance of a clinician. A clinician may have then decided to increase the dose to 1.8 mg of Victoza once a day, if required.

The Victoza pen contained 18 mg of liraglutide, and was designed so that you could easily choose which dosage you required: 0.6 mg, 1.2 mg, or 1.8 mg.

How to take Victoza injections

• Pull off the pen cap and attach a new disposable needle. Use a new needle for each injection.
• Pull off the outer and inner needle caps, and keep the outer one for later.
• Choose the correct dosage using the dose selector.
• Hold the pen with the needle pointing upwards and tap it a few times with your finger to move any air bubbles to the top of the cartridge.
• Insert the needle into your skin and push down on the dose button until the pointer lines up with 0 mg.
• Keep the dose button pressed down and leave the needle under the skin for six seconds in order to make sure all the drops of liquid have been injected.
• Pull out the needle (you may see some liquid at the needle tip – this is normal).
• Put the outer cap back on the needle and then unscrew the needle.
• Dispose of the needle carefully and put the pen cap back on.
• It’s recommended that you use Victoza at a similar time each day.

How long does it take for Victoza to work?

Victoza could help reduce blood sugar levels within a few hours. But it could take a while before your diabetes was well managed. It was important to use the treatment every day to get the benefits of better blood sugar control. When treating diabetes, it’s also encouraged to try and increase the amount of exercise you do, and make changes to your diet so it’s more balanced, and includes a wide range of healthy foods.

What should I do if I make a mistake when taking Victoza?

If you forget to take a dose of Victoza but less than 12 hours have passed, take the dose as usual as soon as you remember.

If you’ve forgotten a dose of Victoza but it’s been more than 12 hours since your last dose, skip the dose for that day and continue to take Victoza the following day as usual.

If you use more Victoza than you were prescribed, you should seek medical attention immediately. You may experience nausea and low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) which must be treated as soon as possible. Signs of low blood sugar include but are not restricted to: clamminess, pale skin, shaking, and feeling light-headed.