Sunday, February 17, 2008

Fentanyl pain patches recalled in Canada

From CTV News:
In the latest of several alerts on the safety of fentanyl pain-relief patches, Health Canada has announced the recall of two brands of the powerful patches.

The agency advises against using:

* 25 mcg/hr Duragesic (fentanyl transdermal system) patches sold by Janssen-Ortho Inc.
* 25 mcg/hr Ran Fentanyl Transdermal System patches sold by Ranbaxy.

Both products are being voluntarily recalled because they may have a cut along one side of the patch that could result in leaking of the fentanyl gel from the patch.

"Exposure to fentanyl gel that has leaked from the patch may lead to increased skin absorption and could result in serious, potentially life-threatening adverse events, including respiratory depression (slowed breathing) and possible overdose, which may be fatal," Health Canada said in its warning. ...more

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