LOTEPREDNOL ETABONATE 5 mg/mL Suspension/ Drops — NDC 60219-1362-2 (Billing 60219-1362-02)

WARNINGS Prolonged use of corticosteroids may result in glaucoma with damage to the optic nerve, defects in visual acuity and fields of vision and in posterior subcapsular cataract formation. Steroids should be used with caution in the presence of glaucoma. Prolonged use of corticosteroids may suppress the host response and thus increase the hazard of secondary ocular infections.

In those diseases causing thinning of the cornea or sclera, perforations have been known to occur with the use of topical steroids. In acute purulent conditions of the eye, steroids may mask infection or enhance existing infection. Use of ocular steroids may prolong the course and may exacerbate the severity of many viral infections of the eye (including herpes simplex).

Employment of a corticosteroid medication in the treatment of patients with a history of herpes simplex requires great caution. The use of steroids after cataract surgery may delay healing and increase the incidence of bleb formation.

ADVERSE REACTIONS Reactions associated with ophthalmic steroids include elevated intraocular pressure, which may be associated with optic nerve damage, visual acuity and field defects, posterior subcapsular cataract formation, secondary ocular infection from pathogens including herpes simplex and perforation of the globe where there is thinning of the cornea or sclera. Ocular adverse reactions occurring in 5% to 15% of patients treated with loteprednol etabonate ophthalmic suspension (0.2% to 0.5%) in clinical studies included abnormal vision/blurring, burning on instillation, chemosis, discharge, dry eyes, epiphora, foreign body sensation, itching, injection and photophobia.

Other ocular adverse reactions occurring in less than 5% of patients include conjunctivitis, corneal abnormalities, eyelid erythema, keratoconjunctivitis, ocular irritation/pain/discomfort, papillae and uveitis. Some of these events were similar to the underlying ocular disease being studied. Non-ocular adverse reactions occurred in less than 15% of patients.

These include headache, rhinitis and pharyngitis. In controlled, randomized studies of individuals treated for 28 days or longer with loteprednol etabonate, the incidence of significant elevation of intraocular pressure (≥ 10 mm Hg) was 2% (15/901) among patients receiving loteprednol etabonate, 7% (11/164) among patients receiving 1% prednisolone acetate and 0.5% (3/583) among patients receiving placebo. To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC at 1-877-835-5472 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch.

Information for Patients Patients should be advised not to allow the dropper tip to touch any surface, as this may contaminate the suspension. If pain develops, redness, itching or inflammation becomes aggravated, the patient should be advised to consult a physician. As with all ophthalmic preparations containing benzalkonium chloride, patients should be advised not to wear soft contact lenses when using loteprednol etabonate ophthalmic suspension.

PRECAUTIONS General For ophthalmic use only. The initial prescription and renewal of the medication order beyond 14 days should be made by a physician only after examination of the patient with the aid of magnification, such as slit lamp biomicroscopy and, where appropriate, fluorescein staining. If signs and symptoms fail to improve after two days, the patient should be re-evaluated.

If this product is used for 10 days or longer, intraocular pressure should be monitored even though it may be difficult in children and uncooperative patients (see WARNINGS ). Fungal infections of the cornea are particularly prone to develop coincidentally with long-term local steroid application. Fungus invasion must be considered in any persistent corneal ulceration where a steroid has been used or is in use.

Fungal cultures should be taken when appropriate. Information for Patients Patients should be advised not to allow the dropper tip to touch any surface, as this may contaminate the suspension. If pain develops, redness, itching or inflammation becomes aggravated, the patient should be advised to consult a physician.

As with all ophthalmic preparations containing benzalkonium chloride, patients should be advised not to wear soft contact lenses when using loteprednol etabonate ophthalmic suspension. Carcinogenesis, mutagenesis, impairment of fertility Long-term animal studies have not been conducted to evaluate the carcinogenic potential of loteprednol etabonate. Loteprednol etabonate was not genotoxic in the Ames test, the mouse lymphoma tk assay, or in a chromosome aberration test in human lymphocytes, three in vitro tests.

In vivo evidence of genotoxicity, an increased frequency of micronucleated immature erythrocytes, was not observed in mice that received a single 4 gm/kg dose of loteprednol etabonate (50,000 times the maximum daily clinical dose). Treatment of male and female rats with up to 50 mg/kg/day and 25 mg/kg/day of loteprednol etabonate, respectively, (600 and 300 times the maximum clinical dose, respectively) prior to and during mating did not impair fertility in either gender. Pregnancy Teratogenic effects: Loteprednol etabonate has been shown to be embryotoxic (delayed ossification) and teratogenic (increased incidence of meningocele, abnormal left common carotid artery and limb flexures) when administered orally to rabbits during organogenesis at a dose of 3 mg/kg/day (35 times the maximum daily clinical dose), a dose which caused no maternal toxicity; the no-observed-effect-level (NOEL) for these effects was 0.5 mg/kg/day (6 times the maximum daily clinical dose).

Oral treatment of rats during organogenesis with 50 mg/kg/day or 100 mg/kg/day (600 and 1,200 times the maximum clinical dose) resulted in embryotoxicity (increased post-implantation losses with 100 mg/kg/day and decreased fetal body weight and skeletal ossification with 50 mg/kg/day and 100 mg/kg/day); doses of 5 (60 times the maximum daily clinical dose), 50 mg/kg/day and 100 mg/kg/day caused teratogenicity (absent innominate artery at all doses and cleft palate and umbilical hernia at 50 mg/kg/day and 100 mg/kg/day).

Loteprednol etabonate was maternally toxic (significantly reduced body weight gain during treatment) when administered to pregnant rats during organogenesis at doses of 5 mg/kg/day to 100 mg/kg/day but not at 0.5 mg/kg/day. The NOELs for the embryotoxic and teratogenic effects in rats were 5 mg/kg/day and 0.5 mg/kg/day (60 and 6 times the maximum daily clinical dose) for embryotoxicity and teratogenicity, respectively. Oral exposure of pregnant rats to 5 mg/kg/day and 50 mg/kg/day of loteprednol etabonate during the fetal period, a maternally toxic treatment regimen (significantly decreased body weight gain), resulted in teratogenicity (umbilical herniation) and embryotoxicity (decreased fetal birth weight); the NOEL for these effects was 0.5 mg/kg/day.

Oral exposure of female rats to 50 mg/kg/day of loteprednol etabonate from the start of the fe… [Excerpted — this section continues on DailyMed.]