FDA: Buying drugs over Internet is buying trouble

Stan Beer
Monday, 19 February 2007 06:13

Your IT - Home IT

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning to consumers about placing orders for prescription drugs over the Internet, saying that recent cases have shown that what was delivered is not what was ordered and is putting people in hospital.

A high percentage of spam hitting email inboxes pushes cut price prescription medications.

In a release, the FDA said it has become aware that a number of Americans who placed orders for specific drug products over the Internet (Ambien, Xanax, Lexapro, and Ativan), instead received a product that, according to preliminary analysis, contains haloperidol, a powerful anti-psychotic drug.

Reports show several consumers in the United States have sought emergency medical treatment for symptoms such as difficulty in breathing, muscle spasms and muscle stiffness after ingesting the suspect product, the FDA said in its statement. Haloperidol can cause muscle stiffness and spasms, agitation, and sedation.

The FDA said laboratory analysis of the misrepresented tablets is ongoing, but preliminary analysis indicates they contain haloperidol, the active ingredient in a prescription drug used primarily to treat schizophrenia. FDA learned about the mislabeled and potentially dangerous products after their recipients complained to a US pharmaceutical manufacturer.

The origin of the tablets is unknown but the packages were postmarked in Greece.

Photographs of the tablets in question and the shipping packages can be seen at http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/photos/haloperidol.html.

According to the FDA, identifying the vendors is difficult because of the deceptive practices of many commercial outlets on the Internet.