Imported pain medication clogged feeding tubes of newborns: report
The use of acetaminophen acquired from Turkiye from the company Atabay increased the risk of a life-threatening illness in neonatal patients, new reporting shows.
The Globe and Mail obtained 28 pages of emails between Alberta Health and Alberta Health Services.
They show the medication clogged feeding tubes due to a higher viscosity than the medication typically used by AHS, and the higher volume of liquid increased the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis, which inflames the intestine and can be fatal.
In a statement on Wednesday, AHS said the decision was made to stop using the medication after approximately two months because of the issues, adding no patients became ill or were injured as a result of the medication.
"Adverse reactions included patients not tolerating the taste of the imported medication, or the volume," the statement said.
The NDP health critic says the decision to bring in the medication endangered Alberta children.
"The idea that now we know that it's actually thicker and clogging tubes to feed very vulnerable young babies is outrageous," Luanne Metz told reporters on Wednesday. "This is what happens when you end up with unintended consequences when you do things that are not rational and not planned."
The province imported the Turkish medicine in 2022 during a shortage of children's pain medication, a decision Health Minister Adriana LaGrange stands behind.
"With over 700,000 children under 12 in Alberta, it was critical for government to act and obtain a much needed, additional supply to support families and ease the strain on the health system," she said in a written statement on Wednesday. "We acted out of compassion and concern at a time when you could not find children’s medication on the shelves."
A November report by the Globe and Mail showed only about 5,000 bottles of five million ordered by the province ever made it to pharmacies.
At that time, LaGrange said the province set aside $70 million to purchase the medication.
She said $20 million was ultimately spent, the rest is being held as a credit with the drug company.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Parents of infant who died in wrong-way crash on Ontario's Hwy. 401 were in same vehicle
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit has released new details about a wrong-way collision in Whitby on Monday night that claimed the lives of four people.
Loblaw leaders push back on 'misguided criticism' of grocer as boycott begins
Loblaw's new chief executive, as well as chairman Galen Weston, pushed back on what they called 'misguided criticism' of the grocer as a push to boycott the company gains steam online.
TD Bank hit with $9.2M penalty after failing to report suspicious transactions
Canada's financial intelligence agency says it has levied a $9.2-million penalty against The Toronto-Dominion Bank for non-compliance with money laundering and terrorist financing measures as the bank also faces compliance investigations in the U.S.
Orangutan observed treating wound using medicinal plant in world first
Scientists working in Indonesia have observed an orangutan intentionally treating a wound on their face with a medicinal plant, the first time this behavior has been documented.
This Canadian restaurant just lowered its prices. Here's how it did it
A Canadian restaurant lowered its prices this week, and though news of price tags dropping rather than climbing sounds unusual, the business strategy in this case is not, according to experts in the field.
Prince William and Kate release photo of daughter Charlotte to mark ninth birthday
Prince William and his wife Kate released a picture of their daughter Charlotte to mark the princess's ninth birthday on Thursday.
Doctors concerned about potential spread of bird flu in Canada
H5N1 or avian flu has been detected at dozens of U.S. dairy farms and Canadian experts are urging surveillance on our side of the border too.
There's a limit to how much interest rates in Canada and U.S. can diverge: Macklem
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says Canadian interest rates don't have to match U.S. or global rates, but there is a limit to how much they can diverge.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.