2024-01-11 01:55:54
Pediatric acetaminophen imported at high prices by Alberta last winter amid a shortage of children’s drugs proved dangerous for some patients, revealed the Globe and Mail Wednesday.
According to documents obtained by the daily thanks to the access to information law, the acetaminophen supplied by the company Atabay Pharmaceuticals had a thicker texture than usual.
As a result, the drug mixture might block the feeding tubes of young hospitalized infants, forcing staff to flush them with water. This added fluid posed a risk of necrotizing enterocolitis, a potentially fatal form of inflammation of the intestines.
The use of Atabay’s product was also more complicated in certain children who struggled to tolerate the taste of the medicine.
The use of Turkish acetaminophen was finally discontinued in neonatal units in the spring.
Responding in a press release, Alberta Health Services assured that no infant was injured or became ill following being treated with the product.
Danielle Smith’s government announced, in December 2022, that it had concluded a contract valued at $75 million to import 5 million bottles of acetaminophen and ibuprofen for children from Turkey.
According to the report of Globe, only 1.5 million bottles were finally received following several delays, while in the meantime the shortage of pediatric medicines had subsided. Ultimately, only 13,700 bottles of medicine were sent to hospitals in the province.
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