Safety Update On Hydroxyethyl Starch (HES)-Containing Products

HSA would like to inform healthcare professionals on a new safety update regarding the use of hydroxyethyl starch (HES)-containing products in critically ill patients and recommends that HES-containing products should not be used in septic patients, critically ill patients, and in patients with renal failure and/or severe hepatic impairment. HES-containing products should only be used to treat hypovolaemia when crystalloids alone are not sufficient provided appropriate measures are taken to reduce potential risk. Positive fluid responsiveness must be confirmed after the administration of HES-containing products, and the lowest possible effective dose should be used. This recommendation is made in consultation with HSA Product Vigilance Advisory Committee (PVAC) based on information from reviews by the Cochrane Collaboration, and the two major regulatory agencies, which revealed increased mortality and renal injury requiring renal replacement therapy in these patients who were treated with HES-containing products. Please refer to the Dear Healthcare Professional Letter for more details.
Healthcare professional, Therapeutic Products
Published:

Dear Healthcare Professional Letters

12 Dec 2019

Only abstracts of the Dear Healthcare Professional Letters (DHCPL) are provided on this website. Details of the letters can be found on the MOH Alert System, which is accessible via the Health Professionals Portal (HPP). HPP is a one-stop portal for all healthcare professionals in Singapore. Dentists, medical doctors and pharmacists may access HPP at https://www.moh.gov.sg/hpp/, and follow the procedures below to access the MOH Alert system.

Step 1: On the top navigation ribbon of webpage, select 'For Healthcare Professionals' followed by 'Health Professionals Portal' and click on the choice of profession. User will be redirected to the specific HPP webpage for the selected profession.

Step 2: Click on the Restricted Content icon on the left panel of webpage and login via SingPass.

Step 3: Click on the MOH Alert icon under ‘Applications’ section

Step 4: Click on the Drug Alert tab to view the DHCPLs.