PJ Online: Products

Indications: Treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia who have been treated with alkylating agents and who have failed to achieve a complete or partial response or achieved only a short remission (less than six months) following fludarabine phosphate therapy.

Major cautions: Alemtuzumab is contraindicated in patients with active systemic infections, those infected with the human immuno-deficiency virus, those with active secondary malignancies and in pregnancy and breast-feeding. Caution should be exercised in treating patients with ischaemic heart disease, angina and in those receiving antihypertensive medication.

Side effects: Very common (>10 per cent) infusion-related reactions include fever, rigors, nausea, vomiting, hypotension, fatigue, rash, urticaria, dyspnoea, headache, pruritus and diarrhoea.

Contact details: Schering Health Care, The Brow, Burgess Hill, West Sussex RH15 9NE. Tel 01444 232323, fax 01444 246613.

Legal category: POM.

Net price: 3 x 3ml ampoules £850.

See SPC for further details.

Viracept film-coated tablets

Viracept 250mg film-coated tablets have been launched by Roche Products. The product is licensed for three times a day dosing (net price, 270 £289.23).

Generics (UK) new products

Generics (UK) has launched the following products:

allopurinol tablets (net price, 100mg 28 91p, 300mg 28 £2.17)

cephalexin capsules (net price, 250mg 28 £2.61, 500mg 21 £4.01)

frusemide tablets (net price, 20mg 28 64p, 40mg 28 78p)

quinine bisulphate tablets (net price, 300mg 28 £1.45)

quinine sulphate tablets (net price, 300mg 28 £1.36)

verapamil tablets (net price, 40mg 84 £1.63, 80mg 84 £2.11, 120mg 28 £1.33, 160mg 28 £2.82).

Climaval tablets blister packaging

The blister packaging for Climaval (estradiol valerate) 1mg and 2mg tablets has been modified. The days of the week on the blister packaging are now displayed in four rows.

Tramadol capsules

A 30-capsule pack of tramadol hydrochloride 50mg has been introduced by Dominion Pharma (net price, £2.99).

Product transfers

The product licences for Voltarol Ophtha (diclofenac sodium 0.1 per cent) eye-drops and Salagen (pilocarpine hydrochloride) 5mg tablets have been transferred from CIBA Vision (UK) to Novartis Pharmaceuticals.

All enquiries concerning the following products should be addressed to Novartis Pharmaceuticals instead of CIBA Vision (UK):

Hypotears (polyvinyl alcohol 1 per cent) eye-drops
Lidcare
Livostin (levocabastine hydrochloride) eyedrops and Livostin nasal spray
Miochol (acetylcholine chloride 1 per cent) solution for intra-ocular irrigation
Oculotect (povidone 5 per cent) eye-drops
Okacyn (lomefloxacin 0.3 per cent) eye-drops
Teoptic (carteolol hydrochloride) eye-drops
Viscotears (carbomer) liquid gel
Visudyne (verteporfin) injection
Vitravene (fomivirsen sodium) injection

The product licence for Ophthalin (sodium hyaluronate 10mg/ml) intra-ocular injection is now held by CIBA Vision AG, Hardhofstrasse 15, CH-8424 Embrach, Switzerland (tel 00 41 1866 4167). All enquiries for the product should be addressed to CIBA Vision AG.

SPC changes

Livostin nasal spray and eye-drops

The summary of product characteristics for Novartis Pharmaceuticals’s Livostin (levocabastine hydrochloride) nasal spray, Livostin Direct nasal spray, Livostin eye-drops and Livostin Direct eye-drops have been amended. The recommendation that treatment should not be continued for more than four weeks has been deleted.

Supply problems

Phenytoin 50mg tablets

APS/Berk has announced that phenytoin 50mg tablets will be unavailable for the foreseeable future due to manufacturing problems. Supplies of phenytoin 100mg tablets are not affected.

Benzamycin gel

Following recent supply problems, Bioglan Laboratories’s Benzamycin gel (benzoyl peroxide 5 per cent, erythromycin 3 per cent) 23.3g and 46.6g packs are now available.

Losec injection and infusion

Stocks of both Losec (omeprazole) intravenous injection and Losec infusion will be available intermittently for the remainder of this year. The situation may continue into 2002.

Aureomycin eye ointment

Wyeth Laboratories is experiencing difficulties in manufacturing Aureomycin (chlortetracycline hydrochloride) ophthalmic ointment 1 per cent. Current stocks are expected to be exhausted by the end of August, after which the company will not be able to supply the product for at least six months. Further orders will not be taken until stocks have been replenished.

Discontinued products

Nebcin 40mg/ml injection

King Pharmaceuticals has discontinued Nebcin (tobramycin) 40mg/ml, because of manufacturing problems.

Loron for infusion

Roche Products is discontinuing Loron (sodium clodronate) ampoules 300mg/10ml for infusion, pack size 5, with immediate effect.

Sorbid SA capsules

AstraZeneca has ceased manufacture and supply of Sorbid SA (isosorbide dinitrate) 20mg and 40mg capsules.

Counter medicines

Dominion Pharma Hayfever eye-drops

Dominion Pharma Hayfever eyedrops (sodium cromoglicate 2 per cent), a pharmacy only product, has been launched (retail price, £3.89).

Products miscellany

Ensure Plus Tetrapack

The pack size of Ensure Plus Tetrapak, from Abbott Laboratories, has been increased from 200ml to 220ml. The price and nutritional content remain the same.

Labels update

Our monthly update of additions to the British National Formulary list of cautionary and advisory labels for dispensed medicines follows the same format as the BNF list. It includes products introduced or amended since publication of BNF number 41 (March, 2001). This month’s changes are underlined.

C = counselling advised

Almogran, 3

Almotriptan, 3

Apomorphine sublingual tabs, C, driving

Cardura XL, 25

Doxazosin m/r, 25

Kaletra, 21

Linezolid tabs, 9, 10 patient information leaflet

Rapamune, C, administration

Salazopyrin EN-tabs, 5, 14, 25, C, blood disorder symptoms and soft lenses, see BNF

Sirolimus, C, administration

Trizivir, C, hypersensitivity reactions

Uprima, C, driving

Zyvox tabs, 9, 10 patient information leaflet