It’s important that certain safety and sanitation standards are practiced during the manufacturing process of medications in order to ensure the product will be safe for consumption. When and if these standards are not met, patients may be put at a serious risk of suffering a drug injury.
A fine example of the risks was made when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently recalled 49 lots of a Fresenius solution that is used in hemodialysis machines. According to documents from the recall, laboratory testing showed the medications contained a bacterium known as Halomonas.
This particular strain of bacteria thrives in water with a high salinity level and can result in serious adverse health events if it makes it’s way into the human body. In fact, a fatality and two injuries have so far been linked to the contaminated drugs.
Such recalls leave many wondering what they can do to stay aware of defective medications and what they should do if they are in possession of one. At Ferrer Poirot Feller Daniel, our team of drug injury attorneys explain the FDA has created a smartphone app that can help keep you up to date on the latest drug recalls. If you find you are in possession of a recalled medication, the app will explain what steps to take next, including whom to contact to report the incident.
It may also behoove an individual who has been harmed by a contaminated drug to discuss their case with an attorney as to ensure their potential rights to compensation are protected.