CAREGIVER RESOURCES

Injection Tips From Dr. Becker

INDICATION

DUPIXENT (dupilumab) is a prescription medicine used to treat adults and children 6 months of age and older with moderate-to-severe eczema (atopic dermatitis or AD) that is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin (topical), or who cannot use topical therapies. DUPIXENT can be used with or without topical corticosteroids. It is not known if DUPIXENT is safe and effective in children with atopic dermatitis under 6 months of age.

Important Safety Information

Do not use if you are allergic to dupilumab or to any of the ingredients in DUPIXENT®.

Please see additional Important Safety Information throughout this video and adjacent links for full Prescribing Information.

Individual results with DUPIXENT may vary.

Sponsored by Regeneron and Sanofi.

DR. BECKER:
I’m Dr. Emily Becker, a board-certified pediatric dermatologist.

When I’m introducing my pediatric patients and caregivers to DUPIXENT, I want them to feel comfortable with the idea of taking an injectable treatment every two or four weeks, depending on the patient's age and weight.

I remind them that DUPIXENT is the only FDA-approved biologic for treating uncontrolled moderate-to-severe eczema in children as young as six months.

I understand that some are apprehensive about injecting their children and are unsure at first.

But for those that are willing and capable, I train them how to properly administer the injection.

That way, they can give the dose at home, rather than bringing their child to my office for every dose.

I show them the training pen or syringe and let them practice with it until they start to feel more confident.

I also point them to DUPIXENT MyWay® for supplemental injection training and helpful videos on DUPIXENT.com.

AISHA:
I'm Aisha, and my daughter Bailey was diagnosed with severe eczema when she was four years old, but she started showing signs of eczema when she was only five months old.

She takes DUPIXENT as prescribed by her doctor every four weeks to help control her symptoms.

At first, I was worried about the pinch that she was going to feel and that I would somehow do the injection wrong.

But after I was properly trained by our doctor, I learned how to give the injection at home. And then over time I could see that by giving Bailey this medication, I am helping manage her eczema.

AFTON:
I’m Afton. My son Beckett was diagnosed with severe eczema when he was seven years old, and he started treatment with DUPIXENT not long after that.

Most of the time, Beckett handles his injection pretty well. But if he starts getting upset or anxious…

…we’ll just talk it out. I give him time to calm down, and we’ll do a countdown from 10.

I’ll say, “Beckett, remember, this medicine is helping your skin feel less itchy. We’ve been through this before.”

I’ve found that it helps if he’s watching something on TV or on his tablet while I administer the injection.

Before Beckett started DUPIXENT, I told his doctor about all the medical conditions he had and medications he was taking.

His doctor and I talked about the potential benefits and risks of treatment, including the most common side effects such as injection site reactions…

…and some serious side effects, including allergic reactions that can sometimes be severe, eye problems, and joint aches and pain.

DR. BECKER:
Some healthcare providers use what I call the HELP method. HELP stands for Hug, Electronic device, Lollipop, and Prize.

Give the child a nice hug as you prepare them for the injection. Have them watch something on a device or a book they enjoy and give them a lollipop so they have some things to distract them. After the injection, give them a small prize, like a toy.

I’ve seen my caregivers and patients have success using this method.

Of course, it can really help to work with a second caregiver, especially with younger kids.

For example, one of the holds I recommend takes two caregivers. It starts with that “hug” I was talking about. One of you sits in a chair hugging the child, face-to-face, belly-to-belly.

This exposes the upper arms and thighs—four of the sites into which DUPIXENT may be injected under the skin.

The other caregiver then administers the injection.

The HELP method is more suitable for younger kids. I find that for kids five and up what works well is to have them lie down on the bed or sofa watching something on a tablet or reading a book as a distraction. One caregiver gently holds their feet or legs to prevent them from wiggling or moving involuntarily. The other caregiver sits with them, helping block the child’s view. Then they can administer the injection in the child’s thigh.

These are the tips I've shared with caregivers of my patients—be sure to talk to your child's healthcare provider before trying these. They may even have recommendations of their own.

If you’re a single parent or caregiver, try having a relative or family friend lend a hand. If that’s not possible, then you always have the option of coming into the office for assistance or asking your child's school nurse if they can help.

AISHA:
Usually, Bailey’s dad holds her and is able to distract her enough so I can give her the injection.

It helps to remind Bailey that we’re all in this together. We’re a team. Daddy has a job, Mommy has a job, and she has a responsibility, too.

After the injection, there’s always a reward of some kind. Her favorite ice cream (chocolate chip), a trip to the playground, or we’ll let her pick out a small toy at the store.

AFTON:
Beckett likes to have some degree of control in his injection routine. He wants to have his special blanket with him. If we’re injecting his arm, he wants to wear his shirt a certain way.

And he wants to choose where the injection goes. We give him options based on where the last injection was, so we’re rotating the site each time.

DR. BECKER:
Usually, the older the child is, the more choices they want to make for themselves.

Don’t be afraid to ask your child, “What can we do to make this better for you?”

If your child is apprehensive about injections, some parents find it helpful to refer to it as “medicine.” So, instead of saying, “It's time for your shot,” say, “It's time for your medicine.”

Something else to consider is the injection routine. I’d suggest doing the injection on weekends. Weekends are usually more relaxed. There’s not as much stress on the parents or the child.

And right after the injection, be sure you’re encouraging your kiddo. “Wow! You’re so brave! Great job!” That kind of thing. You could remind them, “You’re helping your skin heal.”

Try getting your child more invested in their DUPIXENT treatment—show them some “before” photos of what their skin looked like before they started. Then show them some more current photos.

AISHA:
My advice to other caregivers is: You got this! Think about what this treatment can mean for your child and your family. Think about what's possible and keep taking it one step at a time.

Alisa & Lila: Our dupixent journey

INDICATION

DUPIXENT is a prescription medicine used to treat adults and children 6 months of age and older with moderate-to-severe eczema (atopic dermatitis or AD) that is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin (topical), or who cannot use topical therapies. DUPIXENT can be used with or without topical corticosteroids. It is not known if DUPIXENT is safe and effective in children with atopic dermatitis under 6 months of age.

Important Safety Information

Do not use if you are allergic to dupilumab or to any of the ingredients in DUPIXENT®.

Please see additional Important Safety Information throughout this video and adjacent links for full Prescribing Information.

Individual results with DUPIXENT may vary.

Sponsored by Regeneron and Sanofi.

ALISA:

Our daughter Lila is four years old. She is a very social, very happy kid.

She loves unicorns, sparkles, princesses. She loves to play outside. She loves animals, and she's just full of life.

[Lila Nat Sounds]: Got you!

Lila started showing signs of uncontrolled severe eczema when she was about seven months old. She would get redness, bumps, and rashes mainly on her face, and her skin would be puffy and swollen.

Just when it seemed to clear up in one spot, it would pop up somewhere else on her body. We noticed that her eczema would flare when it was hot outside or when she was sweating.

It was also triggered by swimming in a pool. So, when she wanted to jump in a pool on a hot day, I would worry that her eczema would get worse.

Early on, Lila was obviously too young to talk about her eczema, but I could see her scratching at her itchy skin. I could tell she was uncomfortable and that worried me.

We tried a lot of over-the-counter and prescription ointments and creams, but they would only give her temporary relief. When I would put cream on her face, she would usually just wipe it right off like most kids her age would.

She itched a lot, too, and we tried to keep her nails short because she would scratch to the point of bleeding, especially overnight.

It was very challenging to keep her symptoms under control. I felt awful for her, I—that she was having to kind of endure this, you know, as just such a little kid.

[Alisa and Michael Nat Sounds]: One, two three, woah!

My husband, Michael, and I heard about DUPIXENT from our pediatric dermatologist. Lila was three years old at the time.

We were happy to learn that DUPIXENT was FDA-approved for children as young as six months with uncontrolled moderate-to-severe eczema.

Moving to a prescription injectable treatment seemed like a big step for us, but we trusted our doctor's recommendation.

We tried so many treatments and nothing was really working to control Lila's eczema. So, we needed to try something different.

DUPIXENT is not a steroid—that was very important to me.

Before Lila started DUPIXENT, I talked with our doctor about all the medical conditions she had and medications she was taking.

Her doctor and I talked about the potential benefits and risks of treatment, including the most common side effects, such as injection site reactions and some serious side effects, including allergic reactions that can sometimes be severe, eye problems, and joint aches and pain.

Over time, we noticed a difference in Lila's skin. It became clearer, and she was itching less. I am glad we started Lila on DUPIXENT when we did. Of course, this is just our experience. Everyone's experience with DUPIXENT is different.

We were properly trained by Lila's doctor on how to inject, and we follow her recommended dosage.

We did decide to do the injections at home because we wanted to do it on our schedules and not go to the doctor's office.

Lila feels probably like any four-year-old would about injections. We would usually have to offer rewards, such as, you know, "You're gonna have this little pinch and then you're going to get 30 minutes of play time."

Now that we've been doing the injections for some time, she's learned that the reward is really that her skin is less itchy, and she understands that the DUPIXENT injection helps heal the eczema patches on her skin, which she always would call her “boo-boos”.

Our lives don't revolve around Lila’s eczema as much anymore. We let her swim in the pool. We let her play outside in the heat, and her eczema is more controlled. I love that she doesn't have to worry about her eczema as much when she's doing the things that she enjoys. She can just be herself.