Sodium Chloride 23.4%

Sodium Chloride 23.4%concentrated injection for infusion

Active ingredient: sodium chloride

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Consumer Medicine Information (CMI)

This leaflet provides important information about using Sodium Chloride 23.4% You should also speak to your doctor or pharmacist if you would like further information or if you have any concerns or questions about using Sodium Chloride 23.4%.

Where to find information in this leaflet:

1. Why am I using Sodium Chloride 23.4%?
2. What should I know before I use Sodium Chloride 23.4%?
3. What if I am taking other medicines?
4. How do I use Sodium Chloride 23.4%?
5. What should I know while using Sodium Chloride 23.4%?
6. Are there any side effects?
7. Product details

1. Why am I using Sodium Chloride 23.4%?

Sodium Chloride 23.4% is a concentrated injection containing the active ingredient sodium chloride. Sodium chloride is a mineral supplement.

Sodium Chloride 23.4% injection is combined with intravenous solutions (IV) to treat patients with lower than normal salt levels (sodium or chloride ions) in their blood.

It is also injected into small varicose veins to close them.

Your doctors may have prescribed it for another reason. Ask your doctor if you have any questions about why this medicine has been prescribed for you.

2. What should I know before I use Sodium Chloride 23.4%?

Warnings

Your doctor will have considered the need to give you Sodium Chloride 23.4% carefully. Make sure to tell the doctor if you have any allergies.

Do not use Sodium Chloride 23.4% if:

• you are allergic to
  – sodium chloride
  – any other medicines
  – any other substance such as food dyes, preservatives or plastics.
  – any of the ingredients listed at the end of this leaflet.

Some of the symptoms of an allergic reaction may include:

• shortness of breath
• wheezing or difficulty breathing
• swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or other parts of the body
• rash, itching or hives on the skin.

Always check the ingredients to make sure you can use this medicine.

Check with your doctor if you:

• have or have had the following medical conditions:
  – heart problems
  – severe kidney disease
  – swelling of hands, ankles or feet due to excess fluid
  – breathlessness which may be severe or worsen when lying down
  – high blood pressure due to pregnancy
  – liver disease

You should not be given Sodium Chloride 23.4% if:

• the solution is discoloured, cloudy, turbid, or a precipitate is present. The solution is normally a clear colourless solution.
• upon dilution with another IV solution the solution becomes cloudy, turbid, discoloured, or form visible particles.

If you are not sure whether you should be given Sodium Chloride 23.4% talk to your doctor.

During treatment, you may be at risk of developing certain side effects. It is important you understand these risks and how to monitor for them. See additional information under Section 6. Are there any side effects?

Pregnancy and breastfeeding

Check with your doctor if you are pregnant or intend to become pregnant.

Talk to your doctor if you are breastfeeding or intend to breastfeed.

Unless specifically prescribed by your doctor, you should not be given Sodium Chloride 23.4% if you are pregnant or breast feeding. Ask your doctor about the risks and benefits involved.

Use in Children

• Sodium Chloride 23.4% should be administered with care to very young patients.

Use in Elderly

• Sodium Chloride 23.4% should be administered with care to elderly patients.

3. What if I am taking other medicines?

Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking other medicines, including any medicines, vitamins or supplements that you by without a prescription from your pharmacy, supermarket, health food shop, herbalist or naturopath.

Some medicines may interfere with Sodium Chloride 23.4% and affect how it works.

These include:

• Corticosteroids
• other drugs that cause sodium to be retained in the body.

Check with your doctor or pharmacist if you are not sure about what medicines, vitamins or supplements you are taking and if these affect Sodium Chloride 23.4%.

4. How do I use Sodium Chloride 23.4%?

Sodium Chloride 23.4% must only be given by a doctor or nurse.

How much to use

• Your doctor or nurse will decide what dose of Sodium Chloride 23.4% you will receive and how long you will receive it for. This depends on your medical condition and other factors.
• Sometimes only a single dose of Sodium Chloride 23.4% is required.

How to use Sodium Chloride 23.4%

• When treating varicose veins the required volume and concentration of Sodium Chloride 23.4% will be injected into the affected vein all at once and a compression bandage applied.
• Sodium Chloride 23.4% should only be opened when it is time for you to have the injection.
• Sodium Chloride 23.4% is diluted in a suitable solution and slowly injected into a vein over a period of time determined by your doctor.

If you are given too much Sodium Chloride 23.4%

Overdose is unlikely to occur as Sodium Chloride 23.4% must only be given by a doctor or nurse. Your doctor or nurse will monitor the level of sodium and chloride in the blood. Some medical conditions may result in too much sodium or chloride in the body, and you may need urgent medical attention.

You should immediately:

• phone the Poisons Information Centre
  (by calling 13 11 26), or
• contact your doctor, or
• go to the Emergency Department at your nearest hospital.

You should do this even if there are no signs of discomfort or poisoning.

5. What should I know while using Sodium Chloride 23.4%?

Things you should do

If you are about to be started on any new medicine, remind your doctor and pharmacist that you have been given Sodium Chloride 23.4%.

Tell any other doctors, dentists, and pharmacists who treat you that you have been given Sodium Chloride 23.4%.

If you are going to have surgery, tell the surgeon or anaesthetist that you have been given Sodium Chloride 23.4%. It may affect other medicines used during the surgery.

If you feel lightheaded or faint when getting out of bed or standing up, get up slowly.

Standing up slowly, especially when you get up from a bed or a chair, will help your body get used to the change in position and blood pressure. If this problem continues to get worse talk to your doctor.

Call your doctor straight away if you:

• become pregnant during the course of Sodium Chloride 23.4% treatment.

Remind any doctor, dentist, pharmacist or nurse you visit that you have been given Sodium Chloride 23.4%.

Driving or using machines

Be careful before you drive or use any machines or tools until you know how Sodium Chloride 23.4% affects you.

Sodium Chloride 23.4% may cause dizziness, light-headedness, drowsiness, or weakness in some people. If you have any of these symptoms, do not drive, operate machinery, or do anything else dangerous.

Looking after your medicine

• Sodium Chloride 23.4% will be stored in the surgery, pharmacy or ward of a hospital. The medicine is kept in a cool dry place where the temperature stays below 30°C.
• Sodium Chloride 23.4% will only be opened when it is time for you to have the injection.
• It should not be stored after it is opened nor used for more than one person.

Keep it where young children cannot reach it.

6. Are there any side effects?

All medicines can have side effects. If you do experience any side effects, most of them are minor and temporary. However, some side effects may need medical attention.

See the information below and, if you need to, ask your doctor or pharmacist if you have any further questions about side effects.

Less serious side effects

Less serious side effects	What to do
A decrease in saliva, tears, or urination and/or an increase in thirst and sweating may be experienced. Other side effects may include: Nervous system: headaches, confusion Musculoskeletal: cramps	Speak to your doctor if you have any of these less serious side effects and they worry you.

Serious side effects

Serious side effects

What to do

Swelling of hands, ankles and feet may be experienced. Other side effects may include: Cardiovascular: increase in heart rate Gastrointestinal: nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea Respiratory: difficulty breathing or breathlessness which may worsen when lying down Musculoskeletal: muscle weakness, twitching, rigidity, or convulsions Nervous system: dizziness, light headedness, drowsiness, restlessness, or irritability

Call your doctor straight away or go straight to the Emergency Department at your nearest hospital if you notice any of these serious side effects.

Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you notice anything else that may be making you feel unwell.

Other side effects not listed here may occur in some people.

If you are over 65 years of age or very young, you may have an increased chance of getting side effects.

Reporting side effects

After you have received medical advice for any side affects you experience, you can report side effects to the Therapeutic Goods Administration online at www.tga.gov.au/reporting-problems. By reporting side effects, you can help provide more information on the safety of this medicine.

Always make sure you speak to your doctor or pharmacist before you decide to stop taking any of your medicines.

7. Product details

This medicine is only available with a doctor’s prescription.

What Sodium Chloride 23.4% contains

Active ingredient (main ingredient)	sodium chloride
Other ingredients (inactive ingredients)	hydrochloric acid sodium hydroxide water for injections

Do not take this medicine if you are allergic to any of these ingredients.

Sodium Chloride 23.4% does not contain lactose, sucrose, gluten, tartrazine, alcohol, dyes or any preservatives.

What Sodium Chloride 23.4% looks like

Sodium Chloride 23.4% is a clear, colourless solution in a clear glass vial with a plastic yellow top. (AUST R 23119).

Who distributes Sodium Chloride 23.4%

Sodium Chloride 23.4% is supplied by:

Phebra Pty Ltd
19 Orion Road, Lane Cove West,
NSW 2066, Australia.
Telephone: 1800 720 020.

This leaflet was prepared in Jul 2021.

Phebra and the Phi symbol are both trademarks of Phebra Pty Ltd, 19 Orion Road, Lane Cove West, NSW 2066, Australia.