It seems that the FDA made an important recent discovery. Check out the latest reports about the blood pressure drugs and more below.
Drug pressure drugs recalled
A recall of a blood pressure medication is being initiated by a drug manufacturer due to the presence of synthetic opioid oxycodone.
According to a notice published by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), KVK-Tech is recalling one lot of 10-milligram betaxolol tablets that were distributed across the United States to retailers and wholesalers.
The company has taken this measure as a precautionary step, as a single oxycodone tablet was found on the packaging line during the line clearance when the batch was packaged. However, KVK-Tech has not received any reports of a “foreign tablet” in a bottle of betaxolol.
“The betaxolol package insert warns about slowing in the heart rate in elderly patients which is likely to be exacerbated by inadvertent opioid administration,” the recall notice said. “Additionally, some patients prescribed low-dose betaxolol might be have compromised heart and lung function that is also likely to be exacerbated by an opioid. Furthermore, there are minor differences in appearance between betaxolol 10 mg tablets and oxycodone 5 mg tablets, not likely to be noticed by a regular user of the 10 mg betaxolol tablet.”
It noted that some patients who are at risk of overdose “are likely to be negatively affected” by receiving oxycodone – as you probably know by now, this is a powerful narcotic drug.
That’s even more so if a “substantial number of oxycodone tablets have been introduced into a bottle labeled as betaxolol,” the recall notice added. “Therefore, inadvertent exposure to a controlled substance, such as oxycodone, in that patient population is likely to result in significant slowing in breathing, known as respiratory depression, which is a serious health risk.”
The betaxolol tablets come in white plastic bottles of 100 tablets each and have an expiration date of June 2027. The batch number is 17853A. KVK has issued a recall notice letter to distributors and customers via email and overnight mail on September 27. The company will facilitate the return of the recalled product. A few bottles that may contain oxycodone could have been sent to retail pharmacies.
