Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v - 10 x 5ml Ampoules

Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v - 10 x 5ml Ampoules

What is Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v and what is it used for?

Sodium (common salt) occurs naturally in your body. A solution of 0.9% sodium chloride in water for injections is the same strength as your blood. It is used to:

• Prime giving sets before blood or other medicines are given to you.
• Replace the loss of sodium from your body.
• Deliver or dilute other medicines that may be given to you (because it occurs naturally in the body).
• Irrigate (wash) surfaces of your body.

What do you need to know before you are given Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v?

You should NOT be given Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v if you:

• Have higher levels of chloride in the blood than normal (hyperchloraemia).
• Have higher levels of sodium in the blood than normal (hypernatraemia).
• If a medicine has been added to Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9%, the Package Leaflet of the added medicine must be consulted to determine whether or not you can receive the solution.

Warnings and precautions

Talk to your doctor or nurse before being given the injection if you have had any of the following medical conditions:

• Heart disease or heart failure.
• Impaired kidney function.
• Acidification of the blood (acidosis).
• Liver disease (e.g. cirrhosis).
• When there is a larger volume of blood in the blood vessels than there should be (hypervolaemia).
• High blood pressure (hypertension).
• Pre-eclampsia (high blood pressure during pregnancy).
• Fluid retention resulting in swelling of parts of the body, particularly your feet and ankles (peripheral oedema) or build-up of fluid in the lungs (pulmonary oedema).
• Any other condition associated with sodium retention (when the body retains too much sodium), such as treatment with steroids.
• Raised production of the hormone aldosterone (aldosteronism).

If you have a condition that could cause high levels of vasopressin, a hormone regulating fluid in your body. You may have too much vasopressin in your body because, if for example:

• You have had a sudden and serious illness
• You are in pain
• You have had surgery
• You have infections, burns or brain disease
• You have diseases linked to your heart, liver, kidneys or central nervous system
• Because you are taking certain medicines

This may increase the risk of low levels of sodium in your blood and can lead to headache, nausea, seizures, lethargy, coma, swelling of the brain and death.

Brain swelling increases the risk of death and brain damage. People who are at higher risk of brain swelling are:

• Children
• Women (particularly if you are of a fertile age)
• People who have problems with their brain fluid levels, for example, because of meningitis, bleeding in the skull or a brain injury

How Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v is given to you

Your nurse or doctor will give you the injection.

Your doctor will decide the correct dosage for you and how and when the injection will be given.

Since the injection will be given to you by a doctor or nurse, it is unlikely that you will be given too much.

If you think you have been given too much, you must tell the person giving you the injection.

How to store Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v

Your injection will be stored at less than 25°C.

The nurse or doctor will check that the injection is not past its expiry date before giving you the injection.

Keep this medicine out of the sight and reach of children.

What does Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v contain?

The active ingredient is sodium chloride (common salt) in a sterile solution.

Each 1 ml of solution contains 9 mg of sodium chloride.

The other ingredients are sodium hydroxide, hydrochloric acid and water for injections.

What does Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v look like and what are the contents of the pack?

Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v is supplied in:

Clear glass ampoules, 2ml, 5ml, 10ml.

Packed in cardboard cartons to contain 10 ampoules.

Contents

• Pack of 10 x 5ml ampoules of Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v

References and useful links for more information on Sodium Chloride Injection BP 0.9% w/v:

• Manufacturer website: https://www.hameln-pharma.com/product/uk-sodium-chloride-0-9-45-mg-in-5-ml-3282/
• Electronic Medicines Compendium - Summary of Product Characteristics: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/20890
• Report an issue with a medicine to the MHRA Yellow Card scheme: https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk/