4.1. Therapeutic indications

Bromfenac is indicated in adults for the treatment of postoperative ocular inflammation following cataract extraction.

4.2. Posology and method of administration

Posology

Use in adults, including the elderly

The dose is one drop of Bromfenac in the affected eye(s) twice daily, beginning the next day after cataract surgery and continuing through the first 2 weeks of the postoperative period.

The treatment should not exceed 2 weeks as safety data beyond this is not available.

Hepatic and renal impairment

Bromfenac has not been studied in patients with hepatic disease or renal impairment.

Paediatric population

The safety and efficacy of bromfenac in paediatric patients has not been established. No data is available.

Method of administration

For ocular use.

If more than one topical ophthalmic medicinal product is being used, each one should be administered at least 5 minutes apart.

To prevent contamination of the dropper-tip and solution, care must be taken not to touch the eyelids, surrounding areas or other surfaces with the dropper-tip of the bottle

4.3. Contraindications

Hypersensitivity to bromfenac or to any of the excipients listed in section 6.1, or to other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicinal products (NSAIDs).

Bromfenac is contraindicated in patients in whom attacks of asthma, urticaria or acute rhinitis are precipitated by acetylsalicylic acid or by other medicinal products with prostaglandin synthetase inhibiting activity.

4.4. Special warnings and precautions for use

All topical NSAIDs may slow or delay healing like topical corticosteroids. Concomitant use of NSAIDs and topical steroids may increase the potential for healing problems.

Cross-sensitivity

There is the potential for cross-sensitivity to acetylsalicylic acid, phenylacetic acid derivatives, and other NSAIDs. Therefore, treating individuals who have previously exhibited sensitivities to these medicinal products has to be avoided (see section 4.3).

Susceptible persons

In susceptible patients, continued use of topical NSAIDs, including bromfenac may result in epithelial breakdown, corneal thinning, corneal erosion, corneal ulceration or corneal perforation. These events may be sight threatening. Patients with evidence of corneal epithelial breakdown should immediately discontinue use of topical NSAIDs and should be closely monitored for corneal health. Consequently, in at risk patients concomitant use of ophthalmic corticosteroids with NSAIDs may lead to a higher risk of corneal adverse events.

Postmarketing experience

Postmarketing experience with topical NSAIDs suggests that patients with complicated ocular surgeries, corneal denervation, corneal epithelial defects, diabetes mellitus and ocular surface diseases e.g. dry eye syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis or repeat ocular surgeries within a short period of time may be at increased risk for corneal adverse reactions which may become sight threatening. Topical NSAIDs should be used with caution in these patients.

There have been reports that ophthalmic NSAIDs may cause increased bleeding of ocular tissues (including hyphaema) in conjunction with ocular surgery. Bromfenac should be used with caution in patients with known bleeding tendencies or who are receiving other medicinal products, which may prolong bleeding time.

It has been observed in rare cases that upon withdrawal of Bromfenac, a flare-up of the inflammatory response, e.g. in the form of macular oedema, due to the cataract operation may occur.

Ocular infection

An acute ocular infection may be masked by the topical use of anti-inflammatory medicinal products.

Use of contact lenses

In general, contact lens wear is not recommended during the postoperative period following cataract surgery. Therefore, patients should be advised not to wear contact lenses during treatment with Bromfenac.

Excipients

Benzalkonium chloride

This medicinal product contains 0.00155 mg benzalkonium chloride in each drop, which is equivalent to 0.05 mg/ml.

Benzalkonium chloride may be absorbed by soft contact lenses and may change the colour of the contact lenses. Patients should remove contact lenses before using this medicinal product and put them back 15 minutes afterwards.

Benzalkonium chloride has been reported to cause eye irritation, symptoms of dry eyes and may affect the tear film and corneal surface.

Should be used with caution in dry eye patients and in patients where the cornea may be compromised.

Patients should be monitored in case of prolonged use.

4.5. Interaction with other medicinal products and other forms of interaction

No interaction studies have been performed. No interactions with antibiotic eye drops used in conjunction with surgery have been reported.

4.6. Fertility, pregnancy and lactation

Pregnancy

There are no adequate data from the use of bromfenac in pregnant women. Studies in animals have shown reproductive toxicity (see section 5.3). The potential risk for humans is unknown. Since the systemic exposure in non-pregnant women is negligible after treatment with Bromfenac, the risk during pregnancy could be considered low.

However, because of the known effects of prostaglandin biosynthesis-inhibiting medicinal products on the foetal cardiovascular system (closure of ductus arteriosus), the use of Bromfenac during third trimester pregnancy should be avoided. The use of Bromfenac is in general not recommended during pregnancy unless the benefit outweighs the potential risk.

Breast-feeding

It is unknown whether bromfenac or its metabolites are excreted in human milk. Animal studies have shown excretion of bromfenac in the milk of rats following very high oral doses (see section 5.3). No effects on the breastfed newborn/infant are anticipated since the systemic exposure of the breastfeeding woman to bromfenac is negligible. Bromfenac can be used during breast-feeding.

Fertility

No effects of bromfenac on the fertility were observed in animal studies. In addition, the systemic exposure to bromfenac is negligible; for this reason no pregnancy testing or contraceptive measures are required.

4.7. Effects on ability to drive and use machines

Bromfenac has minor influence on the ability to drive and use machines. Transient blurring of vision may occur on instillation. If blurred vision occurs, at instillation, patients should be advised to refrain from driving or using machines until vision is clear.

4.8. Undesirable effects

Summary of the safety profile

Based on clinical data available, a total of 3.4% of patients experienced one or more adverse reactions.

The most common or most important reactions in the pooled studies were abnormal sensation in eye (0.5%), corneal erosion (mild or moderate) (0.4%), eye pruritus (0.4%), eye pain (0.3%) and eye redness (0.3%). Corneal adverse reactions were only observed in the Japanese population. Adverse reactions rarely led to withdrawal, with a total of 8 (0.8%) patients who prematurely discontinued treatment in a study due to an adverse reaction. These comprised 3 (0.3%) patients with mild corneal erosion, 2 (0.2%) patients with eyelid oedema and 1 (0.1%) patient each with abnormal sensation in eye, corneal oedema, or eye pruritus.

Tabulated list of adverse reactions

The following adverse reactions were classified according to the following convention: Very common (≥1/10); common (≥1/100 to <1/10); uncommon (≥1/1,000 to <1/100), rare (≥1/10,000 to <1/1,000); very rare (<1/10,000). Within each frequency grouping, adverse reactions are presented in order of decreasing seriousness.

The table below describes adverse reactions by system organ class and frequency.

MedDRA system organ class

Frequency

Adverse reactions

Eye disorders

Uncommon

Visual acuity reduced

Haemorrhagic retinopathy

Corneal epithelium defect**

Corneal erosion (mild or moderate)

Corneal epithelium disorder

Corneal oedema

Retinal exudates

Eye pain

Eyelid bleeding

Vision blurred

Photophobia

Eyelid oedema

Eye discharge

Eye pruritus

Eye irritation

Eye redness

Conjunctival hyperaemia

Abnormal sensation in eye

Ocular discomfort

Rare

Corneal perforation*

Corneal ulcer*

Corneal erosion, serious*

Scleromalacia*

Corneal infiltrates*

Corneal disorder *

Corneal scar*

Respiratory, thoracic and mediastinal disorders

Uncommon

Epistaxis

Cough

Nasal sinus drainage

Rare

Asthma*

General disorders and administrative site conditions

Uncommon

Face swelling

*Serious reports from post-marketing experience of more than 20 million patients

** Observed with four times daily dose

Patients with evidence of corneal epithelial breakdown should be instructed to immediately discontinue use of Bromfenac and should be monitored closely for corneal health (see section 4.4).

Reporting of suspected adverse reactions

Reporting suspected adverse reactions after authorisation of the medicinal product is important. It allows continued monitoring of the benefit/risk balance of the medicinal product. Healthcare professionals are asked to report any suspected adverse reactions via the Yellow Card Scheme website: www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in the Google Play or Apple App Store.

4.9. Overdose

No abnormal findings or adverse reactions of clinical concern were noted upon administration of two drops 2mg/ml solution four times a day for the period of up to 28 days. Accidental administration of more than one drop should not result in increased topical exposure, as excessive volume would rinse out of the eye due to limited conjunctival sac capacity.

There is practically no risk of adverse effects due to accidental oral ingestion. Ingestion of the 5 ml bottle content corresponds to an oral dose of less than 5 mg bromfenac, which is 30 times lower than daily dose of bromfenac oral formulation formerly used.

If Bromfenac is accidentally ingested, fluids should be taken to dilute the medicinal product.