Drug Safety Update: Volume 1, Issue 4, November 2007

This document is in .pdf format and can be downloaded at the bottom of this page.

In this issue:

Drug safety advice

• Fibrates: new prescribing advice
• Lumiracoxib: hepatotoxicity
• Ceftriaxone: incompatibility with calcium-containing solutions
• Codeine: very rare risk of side-effects in breastfed babies
• St John’s wort: interactions with all antiepileptics

Yellow Card scheme update

• please report suspected reactions with herbal medicines

Hot topics

• Illegal herbal remedies that contain Aristolochia: vigilance needed
• Nasal decongestants that contain pseudoephedrine or ephedrine: sales restrictions

Stop Press

• Moxifloxacin: hepatotoxicity and serious skin reactions—prescribing update
• Co-proxamol withdrawal: reminder to prescribers
• Ecoflac infusion solutions: risk of air embolism

Other information from the MHRA

• Optometrists: independent prescribing
• Patient Information Leaflets: improving quality
• MHRA conference: ‘Combating Counterfeit Medicines’