Britons today decided to ban popular cold and flu medicines over fears they could cause fatal allergic reactions.
Twenty products are being urgently discontinued, including those from Day & Night Nurse and Covonia, as well as private label versions on sale in Boots and Superdrug.
Patients taking pholcodine-containing medicines within a year of general anesthesia are at increased risk of a “very rare” life-threatening side effect, a UK Medicines Agency review has found.
Still, health chiefs conceded the complication from the opioid, which has been used as a cough suppressant since the 1950s, is extremely rare.
Britons called the move a “ridiculous overreaction” and urged regulators to “let people make their own decisions”.
Twenty cold and flu products are being withdrawn in the UK, including some from Day & Night Nurse and Covonia – as well as private label versions sold in Boots (pictured).
Ben Jephcott of Shrewsbury said the decision to ban pholcodine, which he says is “safe and really works”, was a “ridiculous overreaction”.
Another Twitter user, Sandy Karenso, said that pholcodine is “the absolute best cough suppressant.” She called on health chiefs to “leave us alone” and “let us make our own decisions.”
Ben Jephcott of Shrewsbury said the decision to ban pholcodine, which he said “really works”, was a “ridiculous overreaction”.
He called for a national campaign “Save our Cough Mixture” to reverse the decision.
Another Twitter user, Sandy Karenso, said that pholcodine is “the absolute best cough suppressant.” She called on health chiefs to “leave us alone” and “let us make our own decisions.”
It comes after Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), which oversees the safety of medicines used in the UK, confirmed yesterday that it was recalling all medicines containing pholcodine as a precaution.
The opioid works by suppressing the cough reflex by reducing the nerve signals sent from the brain to the muscles involved in coughing.
READ MORE Desperate Brits rush to stock up on now BANNED cold and flu drugs, including day and night nurses (but good luck getting them!)
Online pharmacies displayed “out of stock” messages, while others, including Boots, reported that “stock will be available soon.”
But the Human Medicines Commission (CHM) – an MHRA committee that advises on drug safety – has raised concerns about patients taking the drug before being put under general anesthesia with neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs).
NMBAs are used in around half of the general anesthetics administered in the UK to relax muscles before some operations.
One use is when a patient needs to be intubated where the NMBA paralyzes or relaxes the jaw and vocal cords.
Those who took pholcodine in the 12 months before exposure to NMBAs had an increased risk of a life-threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis.
This causes the patient’s blood pressure to drop and the airways to narrow, blocking breathing. It can be life-threatening without prompt treatment.
The CHM acknowledged that “the absolute risk of anaphylaxis in patients taking pholcodine remains very low”.
The risk is currently believed to affect only about 1 in 10,000 procedures, with many doctors never having encountered the reaction in their entire career.
European Medicines Agency chiefs also recommended that the products be withdrawn from the EU market in December last year following similar concerns.
And two weeks ago, Australia issued a national recall of 55 medicines containing pholcodine for the same reason. Health chiefs said there had been 50 known cases of this anaphylactic shock during general anesthesia linked to pholcodine, including one death.
No comparable figures have been published for the UK.
Affected products including Day & Night Nurse Capsules, Boots Night Cough Relief Oral Solution and Superdrug Pholcodine Linctus are no longer available in UK pharmacies.
Britons using cough tablets or syrup have been advised to check the packaging, label or leaflet to see if pholcodine is a listed ingredient.
Affected products including Day & Night Nurse Capsules, Boots Night Cough Relief Oral Solution and Superdrug Pholcodine Linctus are no longer available in UK pharmacies
If so, they can talk to their pharmacist who can suggest a different medication for them.
They were also advised to tell an anesthetist before surgery if they had taken any medicine containing pholcodine in the past 12 months.
Despite the MHRA’s warning that the potential risk of taking pholcodiene-containing drugs outweighed the benefits, desperate Britons scrambled to get their hands on the few remaining purchase options.
Online pharmacies displayed “out of stock” messages, while others, including Boots, reported that “stock will be available soon.”
Patients took to social media to complain about difficulties in getting hold of depleted supplies of medicine.
One woman who reacted to the news tweeted: “This is outrageous. I struggled for months to find a day nurse and a night nurse so it’s nothing new.
Meanwhile, another wrote: “The withdrawal of day and night nurses from the UK market is quite sad actually, it’s the only drug that has hit the pages with this never ending cold I’m currently suffering from. It’s been like this lately hard to get.’
Another wrote: “What, always bring a night nurse! Never had a problem! Gotta stock up!!” tweeted one of them.
One of them said: “Totally ridiculous. Available for years, also works like a charm. Day and night nurses are great. I hope they are back on the shelves soon.”
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
