Peptide reference
Tesamorelin
Last reviewed · Written by the PepCycle team
Tesamorelin is a synthetic analogue of growth-hormone-releasing hormone and, unlike most compounds tracked alongside it, an approved prescription medicine. Marketed as Egrifta, it is licensed in the US for reducing excess visceral abdominal fat in adults with HIV-associated lipodystrophy — a specific indication, not a general-purpose one.
What Tesamorelin is
Tesamorelin is a stabilised analogue of human growth-hormone-releasing hormone. Like Sermorelin and CJC-1295 it acts on the pituitary GHRH receptor, but unlike them it completed clinical development and holds a marketing authorisation.
Its approved indication in the US is the reduction of excess visceral abdominal fat in adults with HIV-associated lipodystrophy. That is a narrow, well-defined population studied in controlled trials. Being an approved drug for one indication says nothing about its use for anything else, and off-label use remains a clinical decision made by a prescriber.
How it is supplied
As a prescription product, Tesamorelin is dispensed as a kit: vials of lyophilised drug together with a specified diluent and manufacturer instructions for preparation. Presentations have changed across product generations, so the leaflet in your box is the reference, not a general description.
- Prescriber name, pharmacy and dispense date belong in the vial record.
- Preparation follows the manufacturer's instructions exactly — including which diluent, since it is specified rather than assumed.
- Storage requirements are printed on the carton and can differ between the dry and prepared states.
- Record the amount as the product's instructions express it, in mg.
Recording a prescription product
For approved medicines, the log's job changes. You are not deriving anything — you are keeping an accurate, timestamped adherence record you can hand to the clinician who prescribed it. Useful fields:
- Date, time and amount exactly as the prescription expresses it.
- Injection site, rotated — see injection site rotation.
- Missed or late entries marked as such rather than deleted; adherence gaps are clinically relevant information.
- Side effects with timestamps, which is exactly the record a prescriber wants at a review appointment. See logging side effects.
PepCycle exports this history to CSV or JSON, so an appointment can start from a printed timeline rather than a recollection.
Status and distinctions
Tesamorelin is the clearest example in this reference of why "peptide" is not one regulatory category. Within the GHRH family alone: Tesamorelin is approved, Sermorelin was approved and withdrawn, and CJC-1295 never was. Products sold as "tesamorelin" by research-chemical suppliers are not the approved medicine and carry none of its testing or labelling.
It is prohibited in tested sport as a growth-hormone-pathway agent, regardless of prescription status; athletes with a genuine clinical need should look into the therapeutic use exemption process for their sport well in advance.
Frequently asked questions
Is Tesamorelin FDA approved?
Yes. Tesamorelin is approved in the US under the brand name Egrifta for reducing excess visceral abdominal fat in adults with HIV-associated lipodystrophy. That approval is specific to that indication.
Is Tesamorelin approved for weight loss?
No. Its licensed indication concerns visceral abdominal fat in a specific patient population with HIV-associated lipodystrophy. It is not approved as a general weight-loss treatment, and any other use is an off-label clinical decision made by a prescriber.
How do I log a prescription peptide differently from a research vial?
Record it from the label rather than deriving anything: the amount as the prescription expresses it, plus prescriber, pharmacy and dispense date. Skip the reconstitution arithmetic — the manufacturer's instructions define preparation, and a calculator has no role.
Related pages
Track Tesamorelin without re-doing the maths
Enter the vial once — mass, diluent volume, lot, date — and every entry after that converts automatically between mcg, mL and syringe units, with the vial counting down as you log.
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