FDA orders lowering of pain relieving ingredient in Vicodin

January 14th, 2011 - 1:35 am ICT by Aishwarya Bhatt  

New York, Jan 13 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The Food and Drugs Administration in the United States is expected to announce on Thursday that the amount of acetaminophen in some prescription pain killers will be limited.

Currently, the amount of acetaminophen that are found in some of these prescription drugs are as much as 700 mg per capsule. The FDA however indicates that the cap will now be put at 325mg per capsule.

That means some famous prescription painkillers like Vicodin and Percocet will be affected by the cap. The FDA explains that the move is necessary to ensure that incidents of liver failure that are attributed to overdose of acetaminophen are checked.

FDA’s deputy director for new drugs, Dr. Sandra Kweder explained that, “”The amount of acetaminophen in these products has gradually crept up over the years. If you look at these products 20 to 30 years ago, many did not contain high doses of acetaminophen”.

It is estimated that due to the fact that most drugs contain acetaminophen that are not clearly stated on the label, most Americans end up taking in more acetaminophen than they should. This causes about 56,000 people to be rushed to the emergency room for liver failure. The chemical is the leading cause for liver failure. It claims the lives of 200 Americans every year.

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