Sunday, June 29, 2008

Colchicine Recall - Colchicine Side Effects & Colchicine Lawsuits


Drug manufacturer ApotheCure and the Food and Drug Administration enacted an immediate recall of compounded Injectable Colchicine .5mg/ml, 4ml vials, lot number 20070122@26 due to three recent deaths in Oregon. ApotheCure, a pharmacy based in Texas, recently mistakenly made this batch of an already dangerous drug 10 times stronger than the label stated. Colchicine is an extremely toxic nitrogen-based medication used by doctors to treat a number of conditions such as:

• Gout: Gout is caused when uric acid builds up in the cartilage of the tendons or joints throughout the body, which inflames the tissues and results in immense pain. Colchicine gout treatment side effects are extremely dangerous unless the drug is administered carefully


• Secondary amyloidosis(AA): This condition occurs when protein deposits build up in the body


• Scleroderma: When collagen builds up the skin or other organs it can cause scleroderma, which can be fatal in some cases


• Familial Mediterranean fever: This autoimmune disease affects people with ancestry primarily from around the Mediterranean Sea, and affects a wide number of systems including the chest, lungs, skin, and abdomen.

This recall is very similar to a recall that occurred in 2000 when Phyne Pharmaceuticals of Scottsdale, Arizona accidentally labeled their injectable colchicine .5 mg/mL, but it was actually the far more potent and potentially fatal 5 mg/mL.

Three people in Oregon have already died due mislabeled compounded colchicine. Compounding is a process that pharmacies sometimes use to create medications for people that have certain conditions that prevent them from using standard drugs. ApotheCure Inc. compounded colchicine for the Oregon patients, but made it too strong. Colchicine is already extremely dangerous under the right conditions, but when it is used incorrectly it can be almost immediately life-threatening. ApotheCure Inc. initiated a recall in order to prevent more fatalities from occurring.

Colchicine poisoning side effects include:


• Fatigue


• Weakness


• Sore throat


• Rash


• Numbness


• Allergic reactions such as hives, swelling of lips/face/tongue, closing of throat, difficulty breathing


• Unsuspected bleeding and bruising

The most serious colchicine side effects include:

• Fetal damage in pregnant women


• Anemia,


• Respiratory failure


• Kidney failure


• Death

You can buy Colchicine here

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