Drugs having latex and therapeutic alternatives in hospital formulary

OBJETIVE: To analyze the latex content of drugs in hospital formulary and establish possible therapeutic alternatives. METHODS: All drugs susceptible of having latex were selected and written information was obtained from manufacturers. A therapeutic alternative was found for each of them, if possible. RESULTS: Written information from manufacturer was obtained for 605 (97.9%) and from label information for 8 of 632 selected drugs. For 43.9% of not safe drugs (total 57) on patients with latex allergy, a therapeutic alternative was found in hospital formulary. CONCLUSIONS: Knowing drugs having latex improve the prescription security, while the therapeutic alternatives chart eases the validation. The published data updates the scarce and variable information for patients and healthcare professionals.