Testosterone Propionate 100 mg/ml

Testosterone Propionate is an oily liquid for injection. It contains testosterone, the male sex hormone that men's bodies normally make. In this medicine the testosterone is attached to a short chemical chain called propionate. That short chain makes it act quickly and leave the body quickly, so the injections are given more often but each one wears off sooner. Your doctor has chosen this fast-acting form for you because it lets them adjust your treatment quickly.

Read this section before your first injection and tell your doctor if any part of it applies to you.

Warnings and precautions

• +Talk to your doctor before using it if you have heart problems, high blood pressure or swelling in the legs.
• +Talk to your doctor before using it if you have diabetes, epilepsy, migraine, or liver or kidney problems.
• +Talk to your doctor before using it if you have breathing pauses during sleep, or prostate or waterworks problems.
• +This form needs frequent injections, so the same areas of skin and muscle are used often. Sore, red or lumpy injection sites are more common with this medicine than with the longer-acting testosterones. Change the site every time and tell your doctor if a lump does not settle.
• +Because it acts quickly, your mood, energy and sex drive can rise and fall noticeably between injections. Tell your doctor if these swings bother you; a longer-acting form may suit you better.
• +You will need regular blood tests: testosterone level, blood count, cholesterol, liver function and prostate checks.
• +This medicine contains a substance banned in sport and will be detected by doping tests.

Other medicines and Testosterone Propionate

Tell your doctor or pharmacist about every other medicine you take, including those bought without a prescription. Blood thinners such as warfarin are the most important: testosterone can boost their effect, so you may bruise or bleed more easily and your clotting will need checking more often. Diabetes medicines and insulin may need adjusting, because your blood sugar can fall. Steroid tablets such as prednisolone taken at the same time can cause more fluid retention and swelling.

Pregnancy, breastfeeding and fertility

This medicine is not for women. It must not be used by a woman who is pregnant or breastfeeding, because testosterone can affect an unborn or newborn baby. In men, it lowers the number of sperm the body makes, which can reduce fertility while you are on treatment. Speak to your doctor first if you are planning to father a child.

Driving and using machines

This medicine is not expected to affect driving or the use of machines. If you feel dizzy, tired or unusually irritable, do not drive until the feeling has passed.

Always use this medicine exactly as your doctor has told you. Check with your doctor or pharmacist if you are not sure. It is given as an injection deep into a muscle, usually the buttock or thigh, by a doctor or a nurse. It must never go into a vein. Because it is short-acting, the injections are given more often than with other testosterone products, and your doctor will set the interval that is right for you. If you have been trained to inject yourself, follow the instructions you were given and use a different site each time, alternating sides. If you miss a dose, contact your doctor for advice rather than injecting twice as much later. Levels can drop quickly with this form, so tell your doctor if you notice symptoms returning between injections.

Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.

Other possible side effects

• +Pain, redness, swelling or a hard lump where the injection was given (more common with this fast-acting form)
• +Acne and oily skin
• +Difficulty sleeping
• +Mood changes, irritability or restlessness
• +Headache
• +Increased sex drive and more frequent erections
• +Puffy ankles or feet from fluid retention
• +Smaller testicles and a reduced sperm count
• +Breast tenderness or swelling
• +Thinning hair on the scalp, or more body and facial hair
• +Raised blood pressure
• +Changes in blood tests, including thicker blood and altered cholesterol

Keep this medicine out of the sight and reach of children. Store below 25 °C. Keep the ampoules in the outer carton to protect them from light. Do not freeze. Do not use after the expiry date on the carton and ampoule; the date refers to the last day of that month. Do not use the ampoule if the liquid is cloudy or has particles in it, or if the glass is damaged. Do not throw medicines away in wastewater or with household rubbish. Return unused medicine, and used ampoules and needles, to your pharmacy.

The active ingredient is testosterone propionate. Each 1 ml ampoule contains 100 mg of testosterone propionate. The other ingredient is a sterile oil carrier in which it is dissolved. The medicine is a clear, thin, oily solution, colourless to pale yellow. It comes in single-use 1 ml glass ampoules, amber or clear, packed 10 to a carton with this leaflet. Each carton carries a GS1 DataMatrix barcode and a verification code so the pack can be checked online. Manufactured under GMP conditions by Ergopharm Advanced Research Centre, Tandalja, Vadodara, Gujarat 390012, India. For export only.