Paracetamol 10 Mg/Ml Solution For Infusion
SUMMARY OF PRODUCT CHARACTERISTICS
1 NAME OF THE MEDICINAL PRODUCT
Paracetamol 10 mg/ml, solution for infusion.
2 QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE COMPOSITION
One ml contains 10 mg of paracetamol.
The vials of 50 ml contain 500 mg of paracetamol.
The vials of 100 ml contain 1000 mg of paracetamol.
Excipients with known effect: Sodium 0.03 mg/ml For the full list of excipients, see section 6.1.
3 PHARMACEUTICAL FORM
Solution for infusion.
The solution is clear colourless to slightly yellowish.
4 CLINICAL PARTICULARS
4.1 Therapeutic indications
Paracetamol solution for infusion is indicated for the short-term treatment of moderate pain, especially following surgery and for the short-term treatment of fever, when administration by intravenous route is clinically justified by an urgent need to treat pain or hyperthermia and/or when other routes of administration are not possible.
4.2 Posology and method of administration
Intravenous route.
The 100 ml vial is restricted to adults, adolescents and children weighing more than 33 kg.
The 50 ml vial is restricted to term newborn infants, infants, toddlers and children weighing less than 33 kg.
Posology
The dose calculation should be based only on the patient’s weight (please see the dosing table here below).
Dosing table
|
Patient weight |
Single dose |
Maximum daily dose** |
|
< 10 kg* |
7.5 mg/kg paracetamol per administration, i.e. 0.75 ml solution per kg |
- Up to four times a day - The minimum interval between each administration must be 4 hours - The maximum daily dose must not exceed 30 mg/kg (i.e. 3 ml/kg) |
|
> 10 kg and < 33 kg |
15 mg/kg paracetamol per administration, i.e. 1.5 ml solution per kg |
- Up to four times a day - The minimum interval between each administration must be 4 hours - The maximum daily dose must not exceed 60 mg/kg (i.e. 6 ml/kg; maximum daily dose 2 g (i.e. 200 ml) |
|
> 33 kg and < 50 kg |
15 mg/kg paracetamol per administration, i.e. 1.5 ml solution per kg |
- Up to four times a day - The minimum interval between each administration must be 4 hours - The maximum daily dose must not exceed 60 mg/kg (maximum daily dose 3 g, i.e. 300 ml) |
|
Patient weight |
Single dose |
Maximum daily dose** |
|
> 50 kg |
1g paracetamol per administration, i.e. one 100 ml vial |
- Up to four times a day - The minimum interval between each administration must be 4 hours - The maximum daily dose must not exceed 4 g (i.e. 400 ml) |
*Pre-term newborn infants: No safety and efficacy data are available for pre-term newborn infants (see section 5.2). **Maximum daily dose: The maximum daily dose as presented in the table above is for patients that are not receiving other paracetamol containing products and should be adjusted accordingly taking such products into account.
Patients with severe renal insufficiency:
It is recommended, when giving paracetamol to patients with severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance < 30 mL/min), to reduce the dose and increase the minimum interval between each administration to 6 hours (See section 5.2).
In adult patients with hepatocellular insufficiency, chronic alcoholism, chronic malnutrition (low reserves of hepatic glutathione), dehydration:
It is recommended to reduce the dose and increase the minimum interval between each administration. The maximum daily dose must not exceed 3 g (see section 4.4).
Method of administration
The paracetamol solution is administered as a 15-minute intravenous infusion.
Precautions to be taken before handling or administering the medicinal product
Use a 0.8 mm needle and vertically perforate the stopper at the spot specifically indicated.
As for all solutions for infusion presented in glass vials, it should be remembered that close monitoring is needed notably at the end of the infusion, regardless of administration route. This monitoring at the end of the perfusion applies particularly for central route infusion, in order to avoid air embolism.
50 ml vial:
Paracetamol solution for infusion 50 ml vial can also be diluted in a 9 mg/ml sodium chloride solution (0.9%) or 50 mg/ml glucose solution (5%) up to one tenth. In this case, use the diluted solution within the hour following its preparation (infusion time included).
4.3 Contraindications
Paracetamol solution for infusion is contraindicated:
- in patients with hypersensitivity to paracetamol or to propacetamol hydrochloride (prodrug of paracetamol) or to one of the excipients listed in section 6.1;
- in cases of severe hepatocellular insufficiency.
4.4 Special warnings and precautions for use
Warnings
Risk Of Medication Errors
Take care to avoid dosing errors due to confusion between milligram (mg) and millilitre (mL), which could result in accidental overdose and death (see section 4.2).
It is recommended to use a suitable analgesic oral treatment as soon as this administration route is possible.
In order to avoid the risk of overdose, check that other medicines administered do not contain either paracetamol or propacetamol.
Doses higher than the recommended entails risk for very serious liver damage. Clinical symptoms and signs of liver damage (including fulminant hepatitis, hepatic failure, cholestatic hepatitis, cytolytic hepatitis) are usually first seen after two days of drug administration with a peak seen usually after 4 - 6 days. Treatment with antidote should be given as soon as possible (See section 4.9).
This medicinal product contains less than 1 mmol (23 mg) of sodium per 100ml of Paracetamol solution for infusion, i.e. essentially "sodium free".
As for all solutions for infusion presented in glass vials, a close monitoring is needed notably at the end of the infusion (see section 4.2).
Precautions for use
Paracetamol solution should be used with caution in cases of:
- hepatocellular insufficiency,
- severe renal insufficiency (creatinine clearance < 30 mL/min) (see sections 4.2 and 5.2),
- chronic alcoholism,
- chronic malnutrition (low reserves of hepatic gluthatione),
- dehydration,
- Gilbert’s syndrome (familial non-haemolytic jaundice).
4.5 Interaction with other medicinal products and other forms of interaction
- Probenecid causes an almost 2-fold reduction in clearance of paracetamol by inhibiting its conjugation with glucuronic acid. A reduction of the paracetamol dose should be considered for concomitant treatment with probenecid;
- Salicylamide may prolong the elimination t1/2 of paracetamol;
- Caution should be paid to the concomitant intake of enzyme-inducing substances (see section 4.9);
- Concomitant use of paracetamol (4 g per day for at least 4 days) with oral anticoagulants may lead to slight variations of INR values. In this case, increased monitoring of INR values should be conducted during the period of concomitant use as well as for 1 week after paracetamol treatment has been discontinued.
4.6 Fertility, Pregnancy and lactation
Pregnancy
Clinical experience of intravenous administration of paracetamol is limited. However, epidemiological data from the use of oral therapeutic doses of paracetamol indicate no undesirable effects on the pregnancy or on the health of the foetus / newborn infant.
Prospective data on pregnancies exposed to overdoses did not show an increase in malformation risk.
Reproductive studies with the intravenous form of paracetamol have not been performed in animals. However, studies with the oral route did not show any malformation or foetotoxic effects.
Nevertheless, Paracetamol solution for infusion should only be used during pregnancy after a careful benefit-risk assessment. In this case, the recommended posology and duration must be strictly observed.
Breastfeeding
After oral administration, paracetamol is excreted into breast milk in small quantities. No undesirable effects on nursing infants have been reported. Consequently, Paracetamol solution for infusion may be used in breast-feeding women.
4.7 Effects on ability to drive and use machines
Not relevant.
4.8 Undesirable effects
As all paracetamol products, adverse drug reactions are rare (>1/10000, <1/1000) or very rare (<1/10000), they are described below:
|
Organ system |
Rare |
Very rare |
|
>1/10000, <1/1000 |
<1/10000 | |
|
General |
Malaise |
Hypersensitivity reaction |
|
Cardiovascular |
Hypotension | |
|
Liver |
Increased levels of hepatic transaminases | |
|
Platelet/blood |
Thrombocytopenia, Leucopenia, Neutropenia. |
Very rare cases of serious skin reactions have been reported.
Frequent adverse reactions at injection site have been reported during clinical trials (pain and burning sensation).
Very rare cases of hypersensitivity reactions ranging from simple skin rash or urticaria to anaphylactic shock have been reported and require discontinuation of treatment.
Cases of erythema, flushing, pruritus and tachycardia have been reported.
Reporting of suspected adverse reactions
Reporting suspected adverse reactions after authorisation of the medicinal product is important. It allows continued monitoring of the benefit/risk balance of the medicinal product. Healthcare professionals are asked to report any suspected adverse reactions via the Yellow Card Scheme at: www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard.
4.9 Overdose
There is a risk of liver injury (including fulminant hepatitis, hepatic failure,cholestatic hepatitis, cytolytic hepatitis), particularly in elderly subjects, in young children, in patients with liver disease, in cases of chronic alcoholism, in patients with chronic malnutrition and in patients receiving enzyme inducers. Overdosing may be fatal in these cases.
Symptoms generally appear within the first 24 hours and comprise: nausea, vomiting, anorexia, pallor, abdominal pain. Overdose, 7.5 g or more of paracetamol in a single administration in adults and 140 mg/kg of body weight in a single administration in children, causes hepatic cytolysis likely to induce complete and irreversible necrosis, resulting in hepatocellular insufficiency, metabolic acidosis and encephalopathy which may lead to coma and death. Simultaneously, increased levels of hepatic transaminases (AST, ALT), lactate dehydrogenase and bilirubin are observed together with decreased prothrombin levels that may appear 12 to 48 hours after administration. Clinical symptoms of liver damage are usually evident initially after two days, and reach a maximum after 4 to 6 days.
Emergency measures - Immediate hospitalisation.
- Before beginning treatment, take a tube of blood for plasma paracetamol assay, as soon as possible after the overdose.
- The treatment includes administration of the antidote, N-acetylcysteine (NAC), by the i.v. or oral route, if possible before the 10th hour. NAC can, however, give some degree protection even after 10 hours, but in these cases prolonged treatment is given.
- Symptomatic treatment.
- Hepatic tests must be carried out at the beginning of treatment and repeated every 24 hours. In most cases hepatic transaminases return to normal in one to two weeks with full restitution of liver function. In very severe cases, however, liver transplantation may be necessary.
5 PHARMACOLOGICAL PROPERTIES
5.1 Pharmacodynamic properties
Pharmacotherapeutic group: Other analgesics and antipyretics; Anilides; ATC code: N02BE01
Mechanism of action
The precise mechanism of the analgesic and antipyretic properties of paracetamol has yet to be established; it may involve central and peripheral actions.
Paracetamol provides onset of pain relief within 5 to 10 minutes after the start of administration. The peak analgesic effect is obtained in 1 hour and the duration of this effect is usually 4 to 6 hours.
Paracetamol reduces fever within 30 minutes after the start of administration with a duration of the antipyretic effect of at least 6 hours.
5.2 Pharmacokinetic properties
Absorption
Paracetamol pharmacokinetics is linear up to 2 g after single administration and after repeated administration during 24 hours.
The bioavailability of paracetamol following infusion of 500 mg and 1 g of paracetamol is similar to that observed following infusion of 1 g and 2 g propacetamol (corresponding to 500 mg and 1 g paracetamol respectively). The maximal plasma concentration (Cmax) of paracetamol observed at the end of 15-minutes intravenous infusion of 500 mg and 1 g of paracetamol is about 15 pg/mL and 30 pg/mL respectively.
Distribution
The volume of distribution of paracetamol is approximately 1 L/kg.
Paracetamol is not extensively bound to plasma proteins.
Following infusion of 1 g paracetamol, significant concentrations of paracetamol (about 1.5 pg/mL) were observed in the Cerebro Spinal Fluid as and from the 20th minute following infusion.
Metabolism
Paracetamol is metabolised mainly in the liver following two major hepatic pathways: glucuronic acid conjugation and sulphuric acid conjugation. The latter route is rapidly saturable at doses that exceed the therapeutic doses. A small fraction (less than 4%) is metabolised by cytochrome P450 to a reactive intermediate (N-acetyl benzoquinone imine) which, under normal conditions of use, is rapidly detoxified by reduced glutathione and eliminated in the urine after conjugation with cysteine and mercapturic acid. However, during massive overdosing, the quantity of this toxic metabolite is increased.
Elimination
The metabolites of paracetamol are mainly excreted in the urine. 90% of the dose administered is excreted in 24 hours, mainly as glucuronide (60-80%) and sulphate (20-30%) conjugates. Less than 5% is eliminated unchanged. Plasma half-life is 2.7 hours and total body clearance is 18 L/h.
Neonates, infants and children
The pharmacokinetic parameters of paracetamol observed in infants and children are similar to those observed in adults, except for the plasma half-life that is slightly shorter (1.5 to 2 h) than in adults. In neonates, the plasma half-life is longer than in infants i.e. around 3.5 hours. Neonates, infants and children up to 10 years excrete significantly less glucuronide and more sulphate conjugates than adults.
Table. Age related pharmacokinetic values (standardized clearance,* CLstd/Foral (L.h-1 70 kg-1), are presented below.
|
Age |
Weight (kg) |
Clstd/Foral (L.h-1 70 kg-1) |
|
40 weeks PCA |
3.3 |
5.9 |
|
3 months PNA |
6 |
8.8 |
|
6 months PNA |
7.5 |
11.1 |
|
1 year PNA |
10 |
13.6 |
|
2 years PNA |
12 |
15.6 |
|
5 years PNA |
20 |
16.3 |
|
8 years PNA |
25 |
16.3 |
*CLstd is the population estimate for CL
Special populations
Renal insufficiency
In cases of severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance 10-30 mL/min), the elimination of paracetamol is slightly delayed, the elimination half-life ranging from 2 to 5.3 hours. For the glucuronide and sulphate conjugates, the elimination rate is 3 times slower in subjects with severe renal impairment than in healthy subjects. Therefore, it is recommended, when giving paracetamol to patients with severe renal impairment (creatinine clearance < 30 mL/min), to increase the minimum interval between each administration to 6 hours (see section 4.2).
Elderly subjects
Although terminal half life is reported to increase in elderly subjects, their conjugation ability is preserved and no dose adjustment is required in this population.
5.3 Preclinical safety data
Preclinical data reveal no special hazard for humans beyond the information included in other sections of the SmPC.
Studies on local tolerance with paracetamol solution for infusion in rats and rabbits showed good tolerability. Absence of delayed contact hypersensitivity has been tested in guinea pigs.
6 PHARMACEUTICAL PARTICULARS
6.1 List of excipients
Cysteine hydrochloride monohydrate Disodium phosphate dihydrate Hydrochloric acid Mannitol
Sodium hydroxide Water for injections.
6.2 Incompatibilities
Paracetamol solution for infusion should not be mixed with other medicinal products.
6.3 Shelf life
30 months.
From a microbiological point of view, unless the method of opening precludes the risk of microbial contamination, the product should be used immediately. If not used immediately, in-use storage times and conditions are the responsibility of the user.
50 ml vial:
If diluted in 9 mg/ml sodium chloride (0.9%) or 50 mg/ml glucose (5%), the solution should also be used immediately. However, if the solution is not used immediately, do not store for more than 1 hour (infusion time included).
6.4 Special precautions for storage
This medicinal product does not require any special storage conditions.
Do not refrigerate or freeze.
For storage conditions after reconstitution, dilution of the medicinal product, see section 6.3.
6.5 Nature and contents of container
50 ml and 100 ml Type II clear glass vial with halobutyl stopper and a aluminium/plastic flip-off cap.
Pack size: packs of 1 or 12 vials.
6.6 Special precautions for disposal
Use a 0.8 mm needle and vertically perforate the stopper at the spot specifically indicated.
Before administration, the product should be visually inspected for any particulate matter and discoloration. For single use only. Any unused solution should be discarded.
The diluted solution should be visually inspected and should not be used in presence of opalescence, visible particulate matters or precipitate.
Any unused medicinal product or waste should be disposed of in accordance with local requirements.
7 MARKETING AUTHORISATION HOLDER
Morningside Healthcare Ltd 115 Narborough Road Leicester.
LE30PA UK
8 MARKETING AUTHORISATION NUMBER(S)
PL 20117/0204
9 DATE OF FIRST AUTHORISATION/RENEWAL OF THE AUTHORISATION
13/03/2012
10 DATE OF REVISION OF THE TEXT
18/11/2015