According to an article published by CBS news and the AP on Mar. 5, 2008 some of Baxter International’s recalled blood thinner heparin contained large amounts of a single contaminant that is likely responsible for serious heparin side effects and heparin allegic reactions. Accoring to the news report: “the government said Wednesday it’s investigating whether what appears to be a fake ingredient got there by accident or by fraud.”
The Food and Drug Administration has put the numnber of baxter heparin deaths to 21 from heparin allergic reactions
According to the CBS/Ap report -
“We still don’t know whether this inadvertently got into the supply or whether it was actually added,” said FDA drug chief Dr. Janet Woodcock. “We can’t tell you where the contamination originated.”
Testing has uncovered a heparin-like ingredient in batches of the recalled heparin – a substance not found in batches of problem-free heparin.
Particularly disturbing is the fact that the “contaminant is so chemically close to real heparin that standard testing couldn’t tell the difference”, according to the FDA.
Heparin is made, primarily in China, from pig intestines, and the “heparin-like contaminant is related to a complex group of chemicals also in those intestines, FDA officials said.”
These fake in gredients used by Chinese manufacturers iss nothing new, and makes one question why these ingredients are being used. This entire heparin recall debacle oreminds us of the dog food scandal last year when Chinese manufactures included the poisonis chemical melamine to dog food, and the melamine was not detectabl;e by standard testing.
Baxter has pointed to two factories, both owned by Chinese companies, one in China, Changzhou SPL, and in Heparin processed in a Wisconsin factory that uses Chinese made heparin.
The FDA has reported 785 cases of heparin side effects.
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