Heads up on Medicine Recall

[Kevin Palmer]

Here is a cut an paste that was sent to both my Military unit as well as my Government job office.



Military unit did investigate it as say at this time it is legit. (List of most common medicine enclosed).



All drugs containing PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE are being recalled. You may want to try calling the 800 number listed on most drug boxes and inquire about a REFUND. Please read this CAREFULLY. Also, please pass this on to everyone you know.







STOP TAKING anything containing this ingredient. It has been linked to increased hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in brain) among women ages 18-49 in the three days after starting use of medication. Problems were not found in men, but the FDA recommended that everyone (even children) seek alternative medicine.







The following medications contain Phenylpropanolamine:







Acutrim Diet Gum Appetite Suppressant



Acutrim Plus Dietary Supplements



Acutrim Maximum Strength Appetite Control



Alka-Seltzer Plus Children's Cold Medicine Effervescent



Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold medicine (cherry or orange)



Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold Medicine Original



Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Cough Medicine Effervescent



Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Flu Medicine



Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Sinus Effervescent



Alka Seltzer Plus Night-Time Cold Medicine



BC Allergy Sinus Cold Powder



BC Sinus Cold Powder



Comtrex Flu Therapy & Fever Relief



Day & Night Contac 12-Hour Cold Capsules



Contac 12 Hour Caplets



Coricidin D Cold, Flu & Sinus



Dexatrim Caffeine Free



Dexatrim Extended Duration



Dexatrim Gelcaps



Dexatrim Vitamin C/Caffeine Free



Dimetapp Cold & Allergy Chewable Tablets



Dimetapp Cold & Cough Liqui-Gels



Dimetapp DM Cold & Cough Elixir



Dimetapp Elixir



Dimetapp 4 Hour Liquid Gels



Dimetapp 4 Hour Tablets



Dimetapp 12 Hour Extentabs Tablets



Naldecon DX Pediatric Drops



Permathene Mega-16



Robitussin CF



Tavist-D 12 Hour Relief of Sinus & Nasal



Congestion



Triaminic DM Cough Rel! ief



Triaminic Expectorant Chest & Head



Tr! iaminic Syrup Cold & Allergy



Triaminic Triaminicol Cold & Cough .....







I just found out and called the 800# on the container for Triaminic and they informed me that they are voluntarily recalling the following medicines because of a certain ingredient that is causing strokes and seizures in children:







Orange 3D Cold & Allergy Cherry (Pink)



3D Cold & Cough Berry



3D Cough Relief Yellow 3D Expectorant







They are asking you to call them at 800-548-3708 with the lot number on the box so they can send you postage for you to send it back to them, and they will also issue you a refund. If you know of anyone else with small children, PLEASE PASS THIS ON. THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF!







DO PASS ALONG TO ALL ON YOUR MAILING LIST so people are informed. They can then pass it along to their families.







To confirm these findings please take time to check the following: http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/infopage/ppa/



PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO YOUR CHILDREN IN CASE THEY GIVE IT TO THEIR CHILDREN OR TO FRIENDS WHO HAVE CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN.

 

[Fred]

Thanks! I have some of the Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Sinus Effervescent.

 

[Rob T]

This recall was from four years ago. You are safe with your alka-seltzer

 

[Frank Marano]

i was going to say, there was a big thing about alka seltzer and strokes a few years back......

 

[Kevin Palmer]

After looking into it a bit myself some of the meds have made changes that bring it up to par so they can continue to sell product.



I contacted my command and they found several on the list that are selling with the recalled item. They explained since it was on the list they are leaving it on the list.



Why.... just in case you have some laying around in the cupboard.



Bottom line, just make sure the meds you are using does not have "PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE" in it.

 

[Fred]

 

[Bill Ellis]

PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE [PPA] was used for many years and is highly effective. The risk cited above is very small; yet, because of our litigous society, it had to be removed from the market and it was some years ago. A great deal more than 99% of those who have used it never had any side effects. All drugs cause unwanted side effects in some people. Aspirin, if it were ever subjected to the same criteria as many other OTC drugs, would also be pulled from the market. It won't be though since it is far too common and popular. If I had some PPA lying around, I'd keep it for a time when I really need it because it is far superior to the drugs that replaced it.

 

[Ray McIntireJr]

I'd say a stroke is more than just an unwanted side effect wouldn't you.:huh:

 

[Bill Ellis]

Yes, a stroke is very serious and possibly fatal. Here's a link so you can read about it instead of just reacting to it.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

So, Bill_E, after reading your linked item, would you still take some PPA you had lying around for the past several years? Recognizing too, of course, that you aren't supposed to take medicines after their expiration?



TJR

 

[Bill Ellis]

Yes I would. PPA doesn't degrade over time. If you take the time to read the history and understand the statistics used, you will find that the elevated risk was clearly limited to young women who were taking high doses of PPA as an appetite supressent. The study never, never states that PPA causes strokes, only that those who used PPA had a higher chance of having a stroke. Also, the study was limited to people less than 50 years old, the notion being that older people tend to have more strokes anyway and that the likelyhood of any link would be small, so why bother. Keep in mind that aspirin causes stomach bleeding in many users; tylanol causes liver damage in many users; etc, etc for nearly all OTC medications.



Besides, PPA was removed from all OTC products years ago. Although OTC cold medications have an expiration date on the package, they do not really expire. A 10 year old Contac will work just as good as a new one does today.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

That's funny, I read your link and it said:

The Advisory Committee determined that there is an association between PPA and hemorrhagic stroke. It recommended that PPA be considered not safe for over-the-counter use.

That's enough for me to be concerned.



Though I agree with you about not being overly dramatic about such issues and that most all medicines have side-effects of one form or another in small samples, I have to disagree with you on your comments regarding expiration. Why is there an expiration if the stuff never really goes bad; and what backs up your claim that 10 year old cold medicine works as good as the same stuff sold today?



I assume that you are correct that many of the active chemical ingredients don't expire, but might not the expiration have more to do with the inactive or the transport ingredients (sugars, syrups, etc), and the fact that they might go bad and actually cause you to get sick?



Seriously, are you a pharma chemist or something? If you are, I will shuttup!



TJR

 

[Bill Ellis]

Based on the info below, you are more likely to get killed driving your Trac. Note, risk is primarily women. Other data shows highest risk with women taking diet pills and who smoke.







Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) has been commonly used in over-the-counter preparations for more than 20 years with up to an estimated 6 billion doses sold each year in the United States.



FDA records show 44 hemorrhagic strokes among PPA users in the past 30 years. Most were women with the median age being 35. The risk was determined to be the greatest within the first 3 days of PPA use, whether for diet or cold treatment.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

I have to drive my Trac or some other car each day.



I don't have to take a medicine with PPA if there are alternatives.



See the difference?



TJR

 

[Lauren Y]

What about the generic ones that stores like CVS and Walgreens sell under their label that have the same "effect"?

 

[Kevin Palmer]

I am sure if it contains "Phenylpropanolamine" it is an issue as well.



Good question though as there seems to be name brand only on the list.



Hmmmmm

 

[mookie]

The list of products is probably out of date.



From Snopes.com:

On 6 November 2000, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a public health advisory warning that phenylpropanolamine (PPA), an ingredient found in many over-the-counter cold medications and diet aids, may cause strokes and thus should be avoided. Although the FDA did not issue a mandatory recall of PPA-containing products, they asked drug manufacturers to voluntarily stop selling products containing PPA and provide safer alternatives. As a result, most products that formerly included PPA have now been discontinued or reformulated without PPA while the FDA proceeds with the regulatory process necessary to remove all PPA-containing products from the market.



The list of products cited in the e-mail quoted above is now several years out of date, and as the FDA has noted:

[T]here is no comprehensive, updated list available from FDA. FDA is aware of emails circulating widely that list many products allegedly containing PPA. Those emails are no longer valid and should be ignored. Please read the labels of OTC products to determine if they contain PPA.

The FDA has set up a toll-free number for PPA questions at (888) INFO-FDA. A direct line, although it is not toll-free, is (301) 827-4570. The FDA also has a Phenylpropanolamine (PPA) Information Page available on their web site. The FDA has advised that consumers go through their medicine cabinets, paying special attention to cold remedies and diet aids, and discard any medications that list phenylpropanolamine as one of their ingredients.



According to the FDA, "Although the risk of hemorrhagic stroke is very low, FDA recommends that consumers not use any products that contain PPA." The FDA warning came as a result of a May 2000 study conducted at Yale University School of Medicine, in which the Hemorrhagic Stroke Project found PPA to increase the risk of hemorrhagic stroke, a type of stroke characterized by bleeding in the brain. In October 2000, an FDA advisory committee confirmed the findings in the Yale study published by The New England Journal of Medicine, which suggested that PPA could raise the risk of stroke even in young people aged 18 to 49.



(Not everyone is convinced that PPA poses nearly as much of a threat to consumers as claimed, and some critics have maintained the withdrawal was initiated by an overly cautious FDA based on flawed studies.)

 

[Lauren Y]

all of this is going to give me a brain hemmorage, never mind the meds...

 

[Rich Wavrik]

I'm attatching a link to an old urban legend posting on this various topic. It actually has the original e-mail that went around.

 

[Lauren Y]

perhaps a Mythbusters episode??