What Is Victoza? Liraglutide for Diabetes: Dose and Side Effects
Victoza is liraglutide, a once-daily Novo Nordisk injection for type 2 diabetes and heart risk: the label dose, side-effect rates, boxed warning, and vs Saxenda.
The short version
Victoza is the brand name for liraglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist made by Novo Nordisk and injected once a day. It is approved to improve blood-sugar control in type 2 diabetes from age 10. It is also approved to lower the risk of heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease. Saxenda is the same molecule at a higher dose for weight management.
- Victoza = liraglutide, from Novo Nordisk, approved for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular risk reduction.
- One injection a day: 0.6 mg for a week, then 1.2 mg, and up to 1.8 mg if more blood-sugar control is needed.
- In the LEADER trial of 9,340 adults, Victoza lowered the risk of major cardiovascular events (hazard ratio 0.87).
- It is not approved for weight loss. Saxenda is the liraglutide product for that, at up to 3 mg a day.
- Generic liraglutide is sold too. A compounded or "research" vial is neither the brand nor a generic.
Victoza is the brand name for liraglutide, a once-daily injection made by Novo Nordisk. It is approved in the US for two uses:
- To improve blood-sugar control in type 2 diabetes, alongside diet and exercise, in adults and children 10 and older.
- To lower the risk of major cardiovascular events (cardiovascular death, non-fatal heart attack or non-fatal stroke) in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease.
Full detail on the molecule: liraglutide. Full dosing schedule: liraglutide dosage.
What is Victoza?
Victoza is a prescription GLP-1 receptor agonist supplied as a prefilled pen (18 mg in 3 mL) that delivers doses of 0.6 mg, 1.2 mg or 1.8 mg. FDA first approved it in January 2010. Generic liraglutide injection, from makers including Teva, Hikma and Meitheal, is also sold in the US. Those are generic versions, not other brands. Victoza appears alongside the other approved GLP-1 medicines on my FDA-approved peptides list.
Victoza structure
- Molecular formula
- C172H265N43O51
- Molecular weight
- 3751 g/mol
- Length
- 31 amino acids
- Sequence
- HAEGTFTSDVSSYLEGQAAKEFIAWLVRGRG
- Modifications
- Human GLP-1(7-37) with Lys34 replaced by Arg; the remaining Lys26 (position 20 here) carries a palmitoyl (C16) fatty acid attached through a gamma-glutamic acid spacer.
- PubChem CID
- 16134956
Identity checked against FDA prescribing information (Victoza), DailyMed.
Victoza vs Saxenda
Victoza and Saxenda are the same molecule from the same company, approved for different things at different doses.
| Victoza | Saxenda | |
|---|---|---|
| Approved for | Type 2 diabetes blood-sugar control; lowering major cardiovascular event risk in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease | Chronic weight management |
| Ages | Adults; children 10+ with type 2 diabetes | Adults; children 12+ with obesity over 60 kg |
| Top daily dose | 1.8 mg | 3 mg |
| Frequency | Once daily | Once daily |
Both labels say not to combine liraglutide products, so the two are not taken together. More on the weight-management brand: Saxenda.
How Victoza works
Liraglutide is a modified version of the gut hormone GLP-1 and activates the same receptor. Per the label, it releases insulin when blood glucose is raised, and that effect subsides as glucose approaches normal. It also lowers glucagon in a glucose-dependent way and slows stomach emptying. It resists the enzymes that clear natural GLP-1 in minutes, giving a half-life of about 13 hours, which is the reason for a daily injection. See how liraglutide works and how GLP-1 medicines work.
Victoza dosage
| Step | Adults |
|---|---|
| Start | 0.6 mg once daily for 1 week |
| Week 2 | 1.2 mg once daily |
| If more control is needed | 1.8 mg once daily, after at least 1 week on 1.2 mg (maximum) |
The 0.6 mg starting dose is there to reduce stomach side effects. It does not control blood sugar in adults. Children 10 and older start at 0.6 mg and step up in 0.6 mg increments, at least a week apart, to a 1.8 mg maximum.
Other points from the label:
- Victoza is injected under the skin of the abdomen, thigh or upper arm once a day, at any time, independent of meals.
- With insulin, it is a separate injection, never mixed.
- After more than three days of missed doses, it restarts at 0.6 mg.
- A pen must never be shared, even with a new needle.
Full schedule: liraglutide dosage.
Side effects and who should not take it
Most common adverse reactions in adults with type 2 diabetes in the Victoza trials:
| Reaction | Placebo | Victoza 1.2 mg | Victoza 1.8 mg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nausea | 5% | 18% | 20% |
| Diarrhoea | 4% | 10% | 12% |
| Headache | 7% | 11% | 10% |
| Vomiting | 2% | 6% | 9% |
| Decreased appetite | 1% | 10% | 9% |
| Dyspepsia | 1% | 4% | 7% |
| Constipation | 1% | 5% | 5% |
Severe stomach side effects were reported in 4.4% (1.2 mg) and 4.2% (1.8 mg) of patients, against 1.1% on placebo. Victoza is not recommended with severe gastroparesis. The label also warns about:
- Pancreatitis.
- Low blood sugar when combined with insulin or a sulfonylurea (and in children regardless).
- Kidney injury from dehydration.
- Serious allergic reactions.
- Gallbladder disease, reported in 3.1% of patients on Victoza against 1.9% on placebo in LEADER.
Anyone having surgery or sedation should tell the team they take it. Beyond MTC and MEN 2, Victoza is contraindicated with a serious hypersensitivity to liraglutide or its ingredients. Compare the higher-dose rates on Saxenda, and see liraglutide side effects.
Victoza vs compounded liraglutide
Compounded or “research use only” liraglutide is not Victoza, and it is not generic liraglutide either. FDA states that compounded drugs are not FDA-approved and are not reviewed for safety, effectiveness or quality before they are sold. The same comparison for the weekly GLP-1 drugs is in compounded vs branded semaglutide and tirzepatide.
Is Victoza the same as liraglutide?
Yes. Liraglutide is Victoza’s only active ingredient. Victoza is one approved product of that molecule, at doses up to 1.8 mg, for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular risk. Saxenda is another, at up to 3 mg for weight management. Generic liraglutide versions matching each are also sold in the US.
Common questions
What is the generic name for Victoza?
Liraglutide. Victoza is Novo Nordisk's brand of liraglutide for type 2 diabetes. The same molecule is sold at a higher dose as Saxenda for weight management. Generic liraglutide injection, from makers including Teva, Hikma and Meitheal, is also sold in the US. Those are generics, not separate brands.
Is Victoza used for weight loss?
It is not approved for it. Victoza is approved for blood-sugar control in type 2 diabetes and for lowering cardiovascular risk in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease. The liraglutide product approved for weight management is Saxenda, titrated to 3 mg a day rather than Victoza's 1.8 mg maximum. The Saxenda label says not to combine it with Victoza or any other liraglutide product.
Is Victoza insulin?
No. The label describes Victoza as a GLP-1 receptor agonist. It prompts the pancreas to release insulin when blood sugar is high, and that effect fades as blood sugar returns to normal. It can be prescribed alongside insulin, but the label says to give them as separate injections and never mix them. The insulin dose may need lowering to reduce the risk of low blood sugar.
Does Victoza lower the risk of heart attack and stroke?
In adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease, yes. That is one of its approved uses. In the LEADER trial, 9,340 such adults took Victoza 1.8 mg or placebo on top of usual care for a median of 3.5 years. Victoza reduced the combined risk of cardiovascular death, non-fatal heart attack and non-fatal stroke (hazard ratio 0.87).
Can children take Victoza?
Yes, for type 2 diabetes from age 10. Children start at 0.6 mg once daily. If more blood-sugar control is needed, they step up in 0.6 mg increments after at least a week on each dose, to a 1.8 mg maximum. The label notes the risk of low blood sugar in children was higher with Victoza regardless of insulin or metformin use.
What happens if I miss a dose of Victoza?
The label says to carry on with the next scheduled dose and not to take an extra or bigger dose to make up. If more than three days have passed since the last dose, it restarts at 0.6 mg to reduce stomach side effects, with further increases at the prescriber's discretion.
References (3 sources)
Bibliographic detail is fetched from PubMed, not written by me - so a citation here cannot drift from the paper it names. Study design comes from PubMed's own tags rather than my judgement.
- 1.VICTOZA (liraglutide) injection - full prescribing information: indications, titration to 1.2 or 1.8 mg, boxed warning, adverse reaction rates and the LEADER cardiovascular outcomes trial.- DailyMed, National Library of Medicinelabel
- 2.Drugs@FDA record for Victoza (NDA 022341) - original approval in January 2010 and current marketing status.- US Food and Drug Administrationdatabase
- 3.FDA's Concerns with Unapproved GLP-1 Drugs Used for Weight Loss - compounded drugs are not FDA-approved and are not reviewed for safety, effectiveness or quality before sale.- US Food and Drug Administrationregulatory