Sodium Cromoglicate 2%

eMC §4.2 (Allercrom 2% w/v Eye Drops, emc product 4136): 'Adults and Children over 6 years: One or two drops to be administered into each eye four times daily.' DURATION: the eye drops should not be used continuously for more than 14 days except on the advice of a doctor or pharmacist; the carton label and patient information leaflet state that the patient should consult a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms do not start to improve within 48 hours. ELDERLY: there is no evidence to suggest that dosage alteration is required for elderly patients. PAEDIATRIC (drop count, not a per-kg dose, so not expressed in the structured paedDose field): the SPC gives the same one-or-two-drops-four-times-daily regimen for children over 6 years; no posology is stated for children aged 6 years and under — verify any such use against a children's formulary. CONTACT LENSES (§4.4): this formulation contains benzalkonium chloride 0.1 mg/ml (4.5 micrograms per dose) as a preservative, which may be deposited in soft contact lenses — soft contact lenses should not be worn during treatment; other types of contact lens should be removed before instillation and not reinserted earlier than 15 minutes after use. Benzalkonium chloride has been reported to cause eye irritation and symptoms of dry eyes and may affect the tear film and corneal surface, so use with caution in dry eye patients and where the cornea may be compromised, and monitor patients on prolonged use. SUPERSEDES EARLIER HOLD: a previous draft of this page was held because the bundle then held only the sodium cromoglicate 100 mg/5 ml ORAL solution SPC (a different product and route). The bundle has since been re-fetched and now carries the correct 2% w/v eye drops SPC, from which this draft is taken; no oral-solution figure has been carried over.