Past or Present Rebif Users?

[anon07072023]

Hello, I have to try Rebif before my insurance will consider me for an oral DMD (since I've already been on Copaxone). I don't know too much about Rebif. I do know that it's an interferon and can cause flu like symptoms and I think it's intramuscular injections.

Do the injections hurt? Do you do the injections or does a nurse come out and give the injections? Are the injections in your legs? How often do you have to get the injections? Anything else I need to know & not thinking of about Rebif?  Do you have side effects from the injections?

Thanks!
-Kelly

[anon07072023]

Thanks for sharing all this information from your experience with it. I didn't know they were subq, I had thought they were intramuscular - I guess that's a good thing. I'd think that it would be more painful giong into a muscle.
With Copaxone I use an autoinjector. I tried to do it without the injector but couldn't do it. I ended up hitting a nerve or muscle in my leg and switched back to the autoinjector. That hurt like heck.

Thanks again

[Corriel]

Hi Kelly! I used Rebif for about a year and it was my first DMD.

The nurse will show you how to do the injections and then you do them yourself. They are subcutaneous injections done 3 times a week. Outside of thighs, back of arms, abdomen and behind both hips/lower back area.

The dose is titrated for the first month and my side effects only started after the first full dose. I did my injections at night and took Tylenol a half hour or so before to help with fever which seemed to be the only side effect that was consistent.

Some shots hurt and some didn't. I switched from needles to the Rebismart auto injector about a month or so into the treatment and notced that is when the injection site reactions started but that might have been a coincidence.

My first full dose gave me really bad chills with the mild fever but it was only that one time. I did find I was really tired but do not know if that was Rebif or not because I had 2 relapses in 4 months prior to starting it.

The site reactions for me lasted about 3 weeks each time and I likely would have continued with it but I developed spasticity after the relapse just before I started taking Rebif and my arms were so tight I couldn't reach well or hold the autoinjector steady enough so my sites were too limited.

I do know the mild fever for me always seemed to linger into the next morning but was more annoying than anything.

You keep the drug in the fridge and I always took it out in the morning but the nurse said a half hour would be fine. I had read that if it was cold it would sting more but I never tried it on less than 4 hours out of the fridge so I don't know if that is the case or not.

Like with most DMDs they need to keep an eye on your liver enzymes but that's it. Since you have already used Copaxone you already have a good handle on how things work.

Good luck and feel free to PM me if you have any questions,

Corrie