INDICATIONS AND USAGE Carboprost tromethamine injection, USP is indicated for aborting pregnancy between the 13th and 20th weeks of gestation as calculated from the first day of the last normal menstrual period and in the following conditions related to second trimester abortion: 1.

Failure of expulsion of the fetus during the course of treatment by another method; 2.

Premature rupture of membranes in intrauterine methods with loss of drug and insufficient or absent uterine activity; 3.

Requirement of a repeat intrauterine instillation of drug for expulsion of the fetus; 4.

Inadvertent or spontaneous rupture of membranes in the presence of a previable fetus and absence of adequate activity for expulsion.

Carboprost tromethamine injection is indicated for the treatment of postpartum hemorrhage due to uterine atony which has not responded to conventional methods of management.

Prior treatment should include the use of intravenously administered oxytocin, manipulative techniques such as uterine massage and, unless contraindicated, intramuscular ergot preparations.

Studies have shown that in such cases, the use of carboprost tromethamine injection has resulted in satisfactory control of hemorrhage, although it is unclear whether or not ongoing or delayed effects of previously administered ecbolic agents have contributed to the outcome.

In a high proportion of cases, carboprost tromethamine injection used in this manner has resulted in the cessation of life threatening bleeding and the avoidance of emergency surgical intervention.

ADVERSE REACTIONS The adverse effects of carboprost tromethamine sterile solution are generally transient and reversible when therapy ends.

The most frequent adverse reactions observed are related to its contractile effect on smooth muscle.

In patients studied, approximately two-thirds experienced vomiting and diarrhea, approximately one-third had nausea, one-eighth had a temperature increase greater than 2° F, and one-fourteenth experienced flushing.

The pretreatment or concurrent administration of antiemetic and antidiarrheal drugs decreases considerably the very high incidence of gastrointestinal effects common with all prostaglandins used for abortion.

Their use should be considered an integral part of the management of patients undergoing abortion with carboprost tromethamine.

Of those patients experiencing a temperature elevation, approximately one-sixteenth had a clinical diagnosis of endometritis.

The remaining temperature elevations returned to normal within several hours after the last injection.

Adverse effects observed during the use of carboprost tromethamine injection for abortion and for hemorrhage, not all of which are clearly drug related, in decreasing order of frequency include: Vomiting Nervousness Diarrhea Nosebleed Nausea Sleep disorders Flushing or hot flashes Dyspnea Chills or shivering Tightness in chest Coughing Wheezing Headaches Posterior cervical Endometritis perforation Weakness Hiccough Diaphoresis Dysmenorrhea-like pain Dizziness Paresthesia Blurred vision Backache Epigastric pain Muscular pain Excessive thirst Breast tenderness Twitching eyelids Eye pain Gagging, retching Drowsiness Dry throat Dystonia Sensation of choking Asthma Thyroid storm Injection site pain Syncope Tinnitus Palpitations Vertigo Rash Vaso-vagal syndrome Upper respiratory infection Dryness of mouth Hyperventilation Leg cramps Respiratory distress Perforate uterus Perforated uterus Hematemesis Anxiety Taste alterations Chest pain Urinary tract infection Retained placental fragment Septic shock Torticollis Shortness of breath Lethargy Fullness of throat Hypertension Uterine sacculation Tachycardia Faintness, light-headedness Pulmonary edema Endometritis from IUCD Uterine rupture The most common complications when carboprost tromethamine injection was utilized for abortion requiring additional treatment after discharge from the hospital were endometritis, retained placental fragments, and excessive uterine bleeding, occurring in about one in every 50 patients.

Post-marketing experience: Hypersensitivity reactions (e.g.

Anaphylactic reaction, Anaphylactic shock, Anaphylactoid reaction, Angioedema).