Latest Developments:

• On September 18th, 2009 McNeil Consumer Healthcare, the makers of Children’s & Infant’s Tylenol announced that it is voluntarily recalling certain lots of it’s Children’s & Infant’s Tylenol… NOT all of them

• Why were they recalled? A certain type of bacteria was found in one of the inactive ingredients used to make these products. NOTE that the recall is a purely precautionary move and NO bacteria has been detected in any of the finished products

• The recalled lots are those that were manufactured between April and June of 2008

• Be sure to check your stash of kids’ medications to see if you have any of these and if you have any concerns please contact your healthcare provider

• You can find a complete list of the recalled batch lot numbers for each of these Tylenol preparations on our site, just follow the link below and look in the "Drug Blog" section

• To locate the lot number look either at the bottom of the outer packaging box OR on the sticker on the actual bottle itself

• If you find that you have a product from one of the recalled lots, contact McNeil Consumer Healthcare’s customer care center @ 1-800-962-5357 and they will send you a coupon for a new bottle

Guide To Using Pain Medicines Safely

Pain medications are available both over-the-counter and by prescription.

OTC pain medications are primarily used to treat minor aches and pains caused by headaches, cold, flu, fever, arthritis, toothaches, and menstrual cramps and they fall into two (2) main groups:

• Acetaminophen – which is the active ingredient in over 600 OTC products including cough and cold medications as well as pain relievers

• NSAIDs (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) – include medications with the active ingredients aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen; popular brand names include Bayer, Advil, Motrin and Aleve.

Prescription pain medications include:

• Opioids, which are derived from opium and they work by changing the way one experiences/feels pain. They include medications like morphine, codeine, oxycodone and hydrocodone (which is usually combined with acetaminophen or some other non-opioid pain reliever).

When used as directed, pain medications are safe and effective but if they are misused they not only have the potential to be extremely harmful, they can also be deadly.

Potential Problems With Pain Relievers, Who’s @ Risk & What To Do

Acetaminophen:

Taking too much can result in liver damage

• At Risk: those who drink 3 or more alcoholic beverages a day while taking medications that contain acetaminophen

• Be very careful with dosing in children and infants because the concentration of medication in the two formulas is quite different – the infant formula is 3 times stronger than the children’s strength formula

• Signs of liver damage to watch out for include abnormally yellow skin and eyes, light-colored stools, dark urine, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, and in more serious cases, mental confusion, coma and even death.

NSAIDs:

Taking too much can cause bleeding in the stomach

• At Risk: people over 60 years old; people who take blood thinners; people who have a history of stomach bleeding or ulcers; people who have a history of bleeding problems

• Taking too much can also cause kidney damage (but this is usually reversible)

• At Risk: people over 60 years old; people who take water pills (a.k.a. diuretics); people with high blood pressure, heart failure or pre-existing kidney disease

Safety Precautions You Can Take In Order To Avoid Problems

• Always follow the directions given for taking the medication(s); for children and infants, do NOT interchange formulas if you can help it and be sure to use the measuring device provided so that they get the correct dose

• Keep your healthcare providers in the loop – let them know what other medications and supplements you are taking so as to avoid drug interactions … some of which can be life-threatening; also let them know if you have a history of substance abuse so that you get the appropriate care and monitoring needed

• Always double-check the active ingredients, especially with over-the-counter pain medications and cough and cold medications; some may be duplicated and this can cause some potentially serious and even fatal incidents.

For a list of the recalled Tylenol products please visit us at our website (see link below) and look in the Drug Blog section.