Exenatide Injection
Exenatide injection is a once- or twice-dosed GLP-1 medicine given under the skin to help improve blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes, alongside diet and exercise.
🧬 Where this information comes from Click to expand
The clinical label records used on this page are FDA-filed Structured Product Labeling (SPL) retrieved through openFDA. We identified 2 clinical label sets within the page’s selected clinical scope after exact ingredient or ingredient-combination matching and applicable route/form matching. Forms, routes, brands, labelers, strengths, and NDC product-record counts are built separately from matching FDA National Drug Code Directory records. The linked DailyMed document is a representative official source for verification, not the page’s only clinical source. View the linked label on DailyMed →
Exenatide is a GLP-1 medicine for adults with type 2 diabetes that copies a gut hormone, boosting insulin when blood sugar is high, lowering glucagon (a sugar-raising hormone) and slowing stomach emptying; around for over a decade and now available generically, it is an older add-on choice. Most people tolerate it reasonably well once early nausea, sometimes with vomiting or diarrhea, settles. Stop the medicine and get help for severe, lasting stomach pain that may reach your back, a possible sign of pancreatitis (an inflamed pancreas), or for face or throat swelling. Low blood sugar is a risk with insulin or a sulfonylurea such as glimepiride, whose doses may need lowering.
Clinical pearls
- Inject Byetta within 60 minutes before your morning and evening meals, never after eating, and skip a missed dose.
- Take birth control pills and antibiotics at least 1 hour before your exenatide injection, because it slows absorption.
- If you take warfarin, expect more frequent INR (clotting) checks, since bleeding has been reported with this combination.
- Never share a pen, even with a new needle, and inject insulin separately rather than mixing it with Byetta.
Patient information guide A plain-language walkthrough of Exenatide Injection, written from its FDA label.
What Exenatide Injection is used for
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Exenatide injection is used for one condition:
- Improving blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes, along with diet and exercise.
- It should not be combined with other exenatide-containing products.
How Exenatide Injection works
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Exenatide is a GLP-1 receptor agonist. It activates the GLP-1 receptor, which helps the pancreas release insulin when blood sugar is high. It also lowers glucagon and slows stomach emptying. Together, these actions lower blood sugar before and after meals.
Exenatide Injection dosage
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Byetta is injected under the skin twice a day, within 60 minutes before the morning and evening meals. These should be about 6 hours or more apart.
- Never inject after a meal.
- Use the thigh, abdomen, or upper arm and rotate sites.
- Use only if the solution is clear, colorless, and free of particles.
- If you miss a dose, resume with your next scheduled dose.
Your prescriber may raise the dose after a month to reduce stomach side effects. Follow your label and prescriber.
Dosing details from the FDA-approved label
From the Exenatide Injection prescribing information (“Dosage and Administration”). Doses are set by your prescriber for your product, condition, kidney function and age — never change a dose on your own.
- Recommended Dosing (indication not named in the dosing text)
- Initiate at 5 mcg administered subcutaneously twice daily at any time within the 60-minute period before the morning and evening meals (or before the two main meals of the day, approximately 6 hours or more apart)
- Based on clinical response, can be increased to 10 mcg twice daily, which is recommended after 1 month of therapy
- Do not administer after a meal; increase after 1 month is to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal adverse reactions
Read the label’s full dosing text
2 DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION • Inject subcutaneously within 60 minutes prior to morning and evening meals (or before the two main meals of the day, approximately 6 hours or more apart). ( 2.1 ) • Initiate at 5 mcg per dose twice daily; increase to 10 mcg twice daily after 1 month based on clinical response. ( 2.1 ) 2.1 Recommended Dosing • Initiate BYETTA at 5 mcg administered subcutaneously twice daily at any time within the 60-minute period before the morning and evening meals (or before the two main meals of the day, approximately 6 hours or more apart). Do not administer after a meal. • Based on clinical response, the dose of BYETTA can be increased to 10 mcg twice daily which is recommended after 1 month of therapy, in order to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal adverse reactions [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5) and Adverse Reactions (6.1) ] . • Administer as a subcutaneous injection in the thigh, abdomen, or upper arm. • Rotate injections sites with each dose. Do not use the same site for each injection. • Inspect visually for particulate matter and discoloration. Only use BYETTA if the solution appears clear, colorless, and contains no particles. • When using BYETTA with insulin, administer as separate injections and never mix. It is acceptable to inject BYETTA and insulin in the same body region, but the injections should not be adjacent to each other. • If a dose is missed, resume the treatment regimen as prescribed with the next scheduled dose.
2.1 Recommended Dosing • Initiate BYETTA at 5 mcg administered subcutaneously twice daily at any time within the 60-minute period before the morning and evening meals (or before the two main meals of the day, approximately 6 hours or more apart). Do not administer after a meal. • Based on clinical response, the dose of BYETTA can be increased to 10 mcg twice daily which is recommended after 1 month of therapy, in order to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal adverse reactions [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5) and Adverse Reactions (6.1) ] . • Administer as a subcutaneous injection in the thigh, abdomen, or upper arm. • Rotate injections sites with each dose. Do not use the same site for each injection. • Inspect visually for particulate matter and discoloration. Only use BYETTA if the solution appears clear, colorless, and contains no particles.
Excerpted — the section continues on the label. Read the full Dosage and Administration section on DailyMed →
Exenatide Injection side effects
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The most common side effects are:
Common side effects
- Nausea (usually eases over time)
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Low blood sugar (more likely with a sulfonylurea or insulin)
- Feeling jittery
- Dizziness
- Headache
- Indigestion, constipation, or weakness
- Nausea, which often lessens over time
When to get medical help
- Severe, lasting stomach pain, sometimes spreading to your back, with or without vomiting: this may be pancreatitis. Stop the medicine and get medical help.
- Signs of a serious allergic reaction such as swelling of the face or throat or trouble breathing: stop the medicine and get medical help right away.
- Unusual bleeding or bruising: serious, sometimes fatal bleeding from a drug-induced low platelet count has been reported.
- Ongoing vomiting, diarrhea, or dehydration: this can lead to acute kidney injury.
- Symptoms of low blood sugar, especially if you also use insulin or a sulfonylurea.
- Symptoms of gallbladder problems, such as gallstones or inflamed gallbladder.
- Blood sugar control that gets worse over time.
Exenatide Injection warnings and precautions
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- Pancreatitis: Stop the medicine and get help for severe, lasting stomach pain.
- Allergic reactions: Serious reactions, including anaphylaxis and angioedema, have been reported.
- Low platelets and bleeding: Serious, sometimes fatal bleeding has been reported.
- Low blood sugar: Higher risk with insulin or sulfonylureas.
- Kidney injury: Can follow dehydration from vomiting or diarrhea.
- Gallbladder disease and severe stomach problems have been reported.
- Anesthesia: Food or fluid may be inhaled into the lungs during anesthesia or deep sedation, so tell providers before procedures.
- Pens: Never share a Byetta pen.
Exenatide Injection interactions
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Exenatide can affect other medicines in these ways:
- Insulin or sulfonylureas: higher risk of low blood sugar.
- Warfarin: INR may rise, so closer monitoring is advised.
- Oral medicines: absorption may be slower because the stomach empties more slowly.
- Birth control pills and antibiotics: take them at least 1 hour before exenatide.
Interactions listed in the FDA-approved label
From the Exenatide Injection prescribing information (“Drug Interactions”): what the manufacturer studied or reported to the FDA.
- Insulin secretagogues (e.g., sulfonylureas) or insulin: Exenatide promotes insulin release in the presence of elevated glucose, and the risk of hypoglycemia is increased when used in combination with insulin secretagogues or insulin. When initiating exenatide, consider reducing the dose of concomitantly administered insulin secretagogue or insulin to reduce the risk of hypoglycemia.
- Warfarin: Exenatide did not have a significant effect on INR in a drug interaction study, but post-marketing reports describe increased INR with concomitant warfarin use, sometimes associated with bleeding. Monitor prothrombin time more frequently after initiation or alteration of exenatide therapy; once a stable prothrombin time is documented, monitor at the intervals recommended for patients taking warfarin.
- Orally administered drugs (e.g., acetaminophen): Exenatide slows gastric emptying and has the potential to reduce the rate of absorption of orally administered drugs. Use caution where a slower rate of oral absorption may be clinically meaningful. For drugs dependent on threshold concentrations for efficacy, such as contraceptives and antibiotics, take them at least 1 hour before exenatide injection; if such drugs are to be taken with food, take them with a meal or snack when exenatide is not administered.
Read the label’s full interactions text
7 DRUG INTERACTIONS Table 6: Clinically Relevant Interactions with Exenatide Concomitant Use of Insulin Secretagogues or Insulin Clinical Impact Exenatide promotes insulin release from pancreatic beta-cells in the presence of elevated glucose concentrations. The risk of hypoglycemia is increased when exenatide is used in combination with insulin secretagogues (e.g., sulfonylureas) or insulin [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3) and Adverse Reactions (6) ] . Intervention When initiating exenatide, consider reducing the dose of concomitantly administered insulin secretagogue or insulin to reduce the risk of hypoglycemia. Warfarin Clinical Impact In a drug interaction study, exenatide did not have a significant effect on INR [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] . There have been post-marketing reports for exenatide of increased INR with concomitant use of warfarin, sometimes associated with bleeding [see Adverse Reactions (6.2) ] . Intervention In patients taking warfarin, the prothrombin time should be monitored more frequently after initiation or alteration of exenatide therapy. Once a stable prothrombin time has been documented, the prothrombin time can be monitored at the intervals recommended for patients taking warfarin. Orally Administered Drugs (e.g., acetaminophen) Clinical Impact Exenatide slows gastric emptying. Therefore, exenatide has the potential to reduce the rate of absorption of orally administered drugs [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ]. Intervention Use caution when administering oral medications with exenatide where a slower rate of oral absorption may be clinically meaningful. For oral medications that are dependent on threshold concentrations for efficacy, such as contraceptives and antibiotics, patients should be advised to take those drugs at least 1 hour before exenatide injection.
Excerpted — the section continues on the label. Read the full Drug Interactions section on DailyMed →
Not a complete list. The label covers the interactions the manufacturer studied or reported, and our own interaction database does not cover every medicine either. Bring your full medication list, including vitamins and herbal products, to your pharmacist.
Before taking Exenatide Injection
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- Do not use if you have had a severe allergic reaction to exenatide or its ingredients.
- Do not use if you have had drug-induced low platelets from an exenatide product.
- Byetta is not recommended in severe gastroparesis, severe kidney impairment, or end-stage kidney disease.
- Pregnancy: use only if the benefit justifies the risk to the baby.
- Breastfeeding: discuss with your doctor.
- Children: safety and effectiveness have not been established.
- Older adults: dose choice should consider kidney function.
Exenatide Injection overdose
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In a study, overdoses of 10 times the maximum dose caused severe nausea, severe vomiting, and rapidly falling blood sugar. One person needed glucose given by injection or IV. All recovered. If you take too much, call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 or seek medical care.
What Exenatide Injection does in the body
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Exenatide triggers insulin release mainly when blood sugar is high. That release fades as blood sugar drops toward normal, and it does not impair the normal glucagon response to low blood sugar. It restored the early insulin response that is missing in type 2 diabetes. It also lowers glucagon, slows stomach emptying, reduces food intake, and lowers fasting and after-meal blood sugar.
How your body processes Exenatide Injection
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After an injection under the skin, Byetta reaches its peak blood level in about 2 hours. Similar levels are reached whether injected in the abdomen, thigh, or upper arm. It is cleared mainly by the kidneys and then broken down by enzymes. Its half-life is about 2.4 hours, and it is measurable for about 10 hours.
How to store Exenatide Injection
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Store BYETTA in the refrigerator at 36°F to 46°F (2°C to 8°C). Do not freeze.
Written from the FDA-approved label with AI and reviewed by our pharmacy team. How we use AI →
Supplements & herbs that interact with Exenatide Injection
239 supplements and herbal products have documented interactions with Exenatide Injection in the licensed clinical database we use. Most are manageable — but your pharmacist should know about everything you take, including vitamins and herbals.
- Major · 1
- Moderate · 208
- Minor · 30
Educational information from a licensed clinical database (Natural Medicines) — see our data sources & update cadence. Not medical advice: an interaction being documented does not mean it will happen to you; do not start or stop medications or supplements without professional guidance.
Nutrient depletion considerations
Exenatide Injection has been associated with lower levels of 1 nutrient in the clinical literature. This does not mean a deficiency will occur — it means these may be worth discussing with your pharmacist or healthcare provider, especially with long-term use.
Educational information from a licensed clinical database (Natural Medicines) — not medical advice. Do not start or stop medications or supplements without professional guidance.
Exenatide Injection: pharmacist answers to common questions
Quick, plain-English answers to the questions patients ask most about Exenatide Injection — the kind of thing our pharmacy team would talk through with you at the counter.
What is this medicine for?
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When should I inject it?
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Will it upset my stomach?
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What symptoms mean I should get help right away?
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Can I take it with my other medicines?
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Is it safe in pregnancy?
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Is Exenatide Injection available over the counter?
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When was Exenatide Injection first available?
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Who makes Exenatide Injection?
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Answers drafted from the FDA-approved label with AI and reviewed by our pharmacy team. How we use AI →
More about Exenatide Injection on HelloPharmacist
Exenatide Injection forms and strengths (how it comes)
Exenatide Injection is available in 1 form. Different forms and brands can have different approved uses, doses, schedules, and directions. Follow the instructions for your exact product, and do not switch forms without guidance from your prescriber or pharmacist.
Injection
How this form is used
- Byetta is used with diet and exercise to improve blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes.
- Byetta is injected under the skin of the thigh, abdomen, or upper arm, within 60 minutes before the morning and evening meals.
- Byetta should never be given after a meal.
- Rotate Byetta injection sites with each dose.
- Never share a Byetta pen between patients, even if the needle is changed.
Exenatide Injection on the U.S. market: products, makers and brands
How Exenatide Injection appears in the FDA’s National Drug Code Directory — including its dosage forms, strengths, brand names, manufacturers, and FDA-listed product records. These are directory records, not sales or prescription volume.
2 companies list 4 Exenatide Injection product records with the FDA, mostly as injection; the earliest marketing or approval year on record is 2005. Brand names on the directory include Bydureon BCISE, Byetta, Bydureon; the rest are generics.
Share of FDA-listed product records by manufacturer — FDA National Drug Code Directory. Record counts are not sales or prescription volume.
How widely Exenatide Injection is used (Medicaid data)
A general measure of how commonly Exenatide Injection is prescribed, based on Medicaid — one of the largest public drug programs. The figure below is prescriptions filled in Q1–Q4 2025, summed across every form and brand of the drug.
Think of this as a proxy for how widely Exenatide Injection is used, drawn from freely available public data. Medicaid is just one program — these numbers don’t include Medicare, other government coverage, or commercial and cash-pay prescriptions, so real-world use is higher than what’s shown here.
How commonly is Exenatide Injection prescribed? Of the 1,601 medications we measure, Exenatide Injection ranks #810 by Medicaid prescriptions — more than 49% of them.
Utilization by Exenatide Injection product
Pick a product to see its own Medicaid numbers. Each chip is one clinical product — a specific strength & dosage form as defined by RxNorm — with brand-name and generic versions combined.
60 ACTUAT exenatide 0.005 MG/ACTUAT Pen Injector Most dispensed
Summed across the 2 of 2 listed NDC products with Medicaid activity — every brand and generic of this exact strength & form. RxNorm 847915
60 ACTUAT exenatide 0.01 MG/ACTUAT Pen Injector
Summed across the 2 of 2 listed NDC products with Medicaid activity — every brand and generic of this exact strength & form. RxNorm 847910
Other Exenatide Injection products — combination packs and listings not yet matched to a specific clinical product (kept visible so every prescription is accounted for)
Summed across the 1 of 26 listed NDC products with Medicaid activity.
Shares are of the Medicaid prescriptions shown here. Product grouping follows RxNorm (the National Library of Medicine’s drug terminology), so “one product” means one strength & dosage form regardless of manufacturer. Dollar figures are gross Medicaid reimbursement before mandatory rebates — rebates (often large, especially for brand-name drugs) are confidential, so actual net cost to Medicaid is lower than shown.
Source: Medicaid State Drug Utilization Data (CMS), aggregated by generic ingredient — summed across every NDC (all brands, strengths, salt forms and dosage forms) of Exenatide Injection, and across all states and both fee-for-service and managed-care claims. A general popularity signal; it excludes Medicare, commercial insurance and cash prescriptions, so it is not total U.S. use. Based on the 5 of 30 listed Exenatide Injection NDCs with Medicaid activity.
Compare Exenatide Injection products
A representative set of FDA-listed product records for Exenatide Injection — across manufacturers, strengths, and dosage forms, grouped by form with each product’s manufacturer and how the FDA approved it. The same medicine may be made and packaged by different companies, so a single drug can have many directory entries. (It’s also why a refill can look different — a new shape, color, or box — even though it contains the same medication.)
| Strength | Route | Manufacturer / Labeler | Category ⓘ | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 💊Injection | ||||
| 250 mcg/mL | Subcutaneous | Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC × 2 listings | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 250 mcg/mL | Subcutaneous | AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP × 2 listings | NDA | View NDC → |
Showing 4 of 4 products — FDA National Drug Code Directory. See every product, package size and price: browse all 4 Exenatide Injection NDCs →
Exenatide Injection side effects reported to the FDA (FAERS)
After a medicine reaches the market, patients, doctors and drugmakers can send the FDA reports of problems they think may be linked to it. Here’s what’s been reported for Exenatide Injection — a signal of what to watch for, not proof the drug caused it.
Source: openFDA, from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). These are voluntary reports — they don’t prove the drug caused the effect, and counts reflect how often something was reported, not how often it actually happens. Reports also often name the very problem the medicine is taken for — a common reason to file one is that the drug didn’t help — so for a pain reliever you may see “pain” high on the list; that points to why the report was filed, not to the drug causing the symptom. This counts every report that lists Exenatide Injection in any role, so the total runs higher than the FDA’s official dashboard, which counts only cases where the drug is the suspect. For the authoritative figures, see the FDA FAERS Public Dashboard. Always talk to your pharmacist or doctor.
Exenatide Injection FDA approval history
How Exenatide Injection went from FDA review to the pharmacy shelf — the key milestones in its regulatory journey.
Source: Drugs@FDA.
Exenatide Injection recall history
A recall is when a specific batch of a medicine is pulled from the market — usually a manufacturing issue, not a problem with the drug itself. Class I is most serious, Class III least.
The FDA’s enforcement reports list no Exenatide recalls since July 2021.
✅No Exenatide recalls on record since July 2021Source: FDA enforcement (recall) reports, via openFDA; our copy was last updated Sep 24, 2026.
RxNorm Concept Web — From Ingredient to Every Form and Strength
This page starts with one ingredient concept (IN). The branches below show its dose-form concepts (SCDF), then the available clinical drug and strength concepts (SCD). Combination products remain separate concepts with their own pages.
RxCUI 60548 3 dose forms · 4 strengths
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Dose form (SCDF) Auto-Injector RxCUI 1990865In current FDA listingsClinical drug / strength (SCD) 0.85 ML exenatide 2.35 MG/MLRxCUI 1990866 -
Dose form (SCDF) Injection RxCUI 1653611In current FDA listingsClinical drug / strength (SCD) 2 MGRxCUI 1242963 -
Dose form (SCDF) Pen Injector RxCUI 1653616In current FDA listingsClinical drug / strength (SCD) 60 ACTUAT exenatide 0.005 MG/ACTUATRxCUI 84791560 ACTUAT exenatide 0.01 MG/ACTUATRxCUI 847910
Look up RxCUI 60548 in the RxCUI Atlas →
RxNorm is the U.S. National Library of Medicine’s normalized drug vocabulary. Its concept hierarchy can include forms that are not currently marketed; the status on each branch compares that concept with current FDA listings. RxCUIs identify vocabulary concepts, not individual packages or manufacturers.
Exenatide Injection supply and shortage status
Whether Exenatide Injection is in short supply in the U.S. right now, plus any shortage history the FDA has on record. A shortage usually reflects a manufacturing or demand issue — not a safety problem with the drug.
Source: openFDA, from the FDA Drug Shortages database.
💵 What Exenatide Injection costs pharmacies (NADAC benchmark)
The national average invoice price pharmacies pay for the drug itself, from CMS's NADAC survey (data as of Feb 11, 2026). This is a supply-cost benchmark — not a retail price and not what you'd pay at the counter.
| Form | Strength | Pharmacy acquisition benchmark | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Injection · Subcutaneous | 250 mcg/mL | $681.26 per mL | NDC details & price history |
Source: CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC), a survey of retail pharmacy invoice prices. Benchmarks shown are the range across package sizes of a representative product for each form and strength — other manufacturers' products may differ.
Exenatide Injection brand names
Exenatide Injection is sold under 3 brand names in the FDA directory — Bydureon BCISE, Byetta, Bydureon. A brand and its generic contain the same active ingredient; the brand name belongs to one company's product.
Who makes Exenatide Injection: manufacturers and labelers
2 companies list Exenatide Injection products with the FDA. By number of product records, the largest are Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP. Labelers include manufacturers and repackagers; the product in your bottle depends on which one your pharmacy stocks.
Exenatide Injection drug class (RxNorm)
Exenatide Injection belongs to the GLP-1 Receptor Agonist class.
Classified by RxNorm RxClass — the U.S. National Library of Medicine's standardized drug-classification service (Established Pharmacologic Class from the FDA, the ATC drug family from the WHO, and mechanism of action). Reference only, not medical advice.
Sources for this Exenatide Injection page
Core label, product, RxNorm, safety, and utilization data on this page come from the sources identified below. AI-written, editorial, and licensed sections are labeled separately.
How this page is built
HelloPharmacist combines public FDA and NLM records and does not author the underlying clinical facts. The plain-language sections are written with AI from the FDA-approved label text and reviewed by our pharmacy team before publication. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP is the representative DailyMed label linked for verification and dates. This is general education, not medical advice: always talk to your doctor or pharmacist about your own medicines. How we build and review drug pages →