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A risk management plan (RMP) contains an overview of important safety concerns associated with the use of a therapeutic product (TP) and proposed pharmacovigilance activities to monitor and manage these safety concerns in the post-approval stage. The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) of Singapore has legislated its requirements for RMPs as part of its product life cycle approach in the management of safety concerns associated with TPs. Under the Health Product (Therapeutic Products) Regulations enacted in November 2016, companies may be required to implement RMPs under the direction of HSA to help ensure that the benefits of TPs outweigh their risks. In this commentary, we present a case study on the local RMP for Dengvaxia®, the world's first dengue vaccine, which has been approved for use in Singapore. We hope that this article raises awareness among healthcare professionals about the concept of RMPs and how RMPs are implemented locally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the approach of the Singapore Health Sciences Authority to regulatory innovation which can help to address the challenges in global regulatory capacity. Topics mention including the effort and responsibilities of the national regulatory authorities (NRAs), confidence-based regulatory approach and evolution of health product's regulation.

Historically, global drug safety regulations were generally reactive and post-marketing safety monitoring comprised mainly spontaneous adverse event reporting. As a strategic move towards proactive pharmacovigilance, several drug regulatory agencies have introduced requirements for risk management plans (RMPs) since the early 2000s. The aim of this paper is to share the process on how the Health Sciences Authority (HSA), the national drug regulatory authority of Singapore, conceptualised and implemented its local RMP requirements, drawing upon the experiences of international regulatory agencies. Some of the steps taken include the incorporation of local RMP requirements into HSA’s guidance documents for the pharmaceutical industry, consultation with industry stakeholders on the proposed updates to these requirements, and strengthening of the enforcement of RMP requirements through relevant enactments in legislation. We also compared our requirements with that of other regulatory agencies to ensure that they were aligned with global regulatory standards. Based on our experience in developing the regulatory framework for RMP requirements in Singapore, we put forth recommendations which could be useful for other regulatory agencies embarking on the implementation of RMP requirements in their countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A risk management plan (RMP) contains an overview of important safety concerns associated with the use of a therapeutic product (TP) and proposed pharmacovigilance activities to monitor and manage these safety concerns in the post-approval stage. The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) of Singapore has legislated its requirements for RMPs as part of its product life cycle approach in the management of safety concerns associated with TPs. Under the Health Product (Therapeutic Products) Regulations enacted in November 2016, companies may be required to implement RMPs under the direction of HSA to help ensure that the benefits of TPs outweigh their risks. In this commentary, we present a case study on the local RMP for Dengvaxia®, the world's first dengue vaccine, which has been approved for use in Singapore. We hope that this article raises awareness among healthcare professionals about the concept of RMPs and how RMPs are implemented locally., (Copyright: © Singapore Medical Association.)

A 42-year-old female developed fulminant hepatic failure after having ingested an undetermined quantity of a herbal product over a period of approximately four months prior to the onset of her illness. Clinically, the cause of liver failure was assessed to be drug-induced and she eventually underwent total hepatectomy, with porto-caval shunting, in anticipation of a living-unrelated liver transplant. Unfortunately, her condition deteriorated and she died less than 48 hours post-operatively, approximately three weeks post-admission. An autopsy showed that the subject was deeply jaundiced and severely obese (BMI: 47.1 kg m(-2)), with evidence of diffuse haemorrhage, including the presence of 1.35 l of blood in the peritoneal cavity. The liver had been removed and was later recovered as a formalin-fixed specimen which was markedly contracted, comprising multiple micronodules interspersed with extensive areas of dense fibrotic tissue. Histologically, there was massive necrosis of the hepatic parenchyma, such that the residual hepatocytes were disposed as nodules displaying variable cellular regeneration and ballooning degeneration, attended by florid ductal proliferation and mixed inflammatory infiltrates. Infective, autoimmune, metabolic, vascular, neoplastic and most other natural causes of massive hepatocellular necrosis were effectively excluded. Analysis of the post-mortem blood samples yielded fluconazole, metronidazole, frusemide, lignocaine and tramadol, (therapeutic agents administered to the patient during her last illness). Subsequent analysis of the residual capsules revealed that they were adulterated by fenfluramine, N-nitrosofenfluramine (1.3-1.6 mg per capsule), nicotinamide (13.3-15.6 mg per capsule) and thyroid extract. None of the herbal ingredients is currently known to be hepatotoxic and much the same applies to fenfluramine, nicotinamide (except when taken in mega-doses) and thyroid extract. However, as nitrosamines are known to be variably hepatotoxic, it would be reasonable to surmise that, in the absence of a more plausible cause of liver damage, N-nitrosofenfluramine was the likely cause of massive hepatocellular necrosis in this instance.

Orlistat (tetrahydrolipostatin) is a lipase inhibitor which is used, in conjunction with appropriate dietary control, for the treatment of obesity. It is generally deemed to be a safe drug, which mainly exerts a topical action on the stomach and small bowel, with negligible systemic absorption and oral bioavailability. Consequently, its adverse effects have largely been limited to relatively mild gastrointestinal disorders. However, there have been recent, published reports of non-fatal acute hepatitis and systemic hypertension associated with its use. The present case concerns a 62-year-old male who died from massive hepatocellular necrosis, consistent with drug-induced, fulminant hepatitis, associated with the use of oral orlistat, presumably administered at the recommended daily dose of 360 mg. It is postulated that this may represent a rare idiosyncratic reaction to the drug.