We receive occasional orders (1-2 times/year) for a 1% alum bladder irrigation. Our facility meets compliance for medium risk level compounding. I cannot find a supplier of a sterile alum powder. The only option that I see is to order from a compounding pharmacy, but with typical rates of 300ml/hr, it is difficult to have a sufficient supply on hand.
I believe alum irrigation is a high risk compounded item per USP 797. Several years ago, I had heard of third parties compounding this for hospitals, but I am not sure what the situation is now. I have looked out to the UIC for information and here is a link with some general information.
Harry is correct that compounding Alum Bladder irrigation solutions are high-risk level CSPs. Using any non-sterile powder is considered high-risk level compounding and following all of the appropriate USP 797 activities will be necessary.
We ended up ordering alum 1% 2 L bags from a compounding pharmacy. The bags have a shelf-life of 180 days at room temp. I bet we end up wasting most bags, but our urologists were insistent that the drug be available to them.
We have a patient in need of Alum Bladder Irrigaion. Where are you getting this from, as we are not certified for High Risk compounding. Thanks for any assistance you can give. PRMC
We just looked into the 3rd party compounder for alum irrigation. It's very expensive per bag. Probably going to look at a local compounding pharmacy to see if they can sterilize the powder for us.
