Blood Pressure
Teva Pharmaceuticals has issued a voluntary recall of two blood pressure medications. Dr. Elizabeth Maziarka reads a blood pressure gauge during an examination of patient June Mendez at the Codman Square Health Center April 11, 2006 in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is scheduled to sign a health care reform bill April 12 that would make it the first state in the nation to require all its citizens have some form of health insurance. Getty Images/Joe Raedle

Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA) has issued a voluntary recall of two blood pressure medications, including all lots of Amlodipine/Valsartan combination tablets and Amlodipine/Valsartan/Hydrochlorothiazide combination tablets. A complete list of recalled tablets can be found here. The medication is being recalled because of a detected impurity that has been classified as a cancer-causing carcinogen.

The impurity is known as N-nitroso-diethylamine (NDEA) and is manufactured by Mylan India. The chemical can typically be found in trace amounts in certain foods, drinking wate r, air pollution, and some industrial processes, according to the company.

Patients taking the recalled tablets are advised to continue taking the medication and to speak to their physician or pharmacists for alternative treatment options. The risk to patients that immediately stop taking the medication without an alternative medical treatment may be higher than the continuation of the recalled tablets, according to the company.

The recalled tablets are used to treat high blood pressure. To date, Teva has not received any reports of adverse reactions from the recalled medication. The company has notified distributors and consumers by mail of the recall and is in the process or arranging for a return and reimbursement of the affected products.

The company is advising distributors and retailers of the recalled medication to immediately stop distributing it and to quarantine any remaining samples of the product they have in their control. They should also return the product to Teva.

Consumers with questions about the recall can contract Teva Medical Information at 1-888-838-2872 (option 3, then option 4), Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. Voicemail is available 24 hours a day seven days a week. Email address is druginfo@tevapharm.com.

If a consumer of the recalled medication has had an adverse reaction or problem with the medication, Teva is urging them to call the company directly at 1-888-838-2872 or report it to the FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program online at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm. Forms can be downloaded from MedWatch at www.fda.gov/MedWatch/getforms.htmor by calling 1-800-332-1088 to request a form by mail. Fax number is 1-800-FDA-0178.

Teva stock was down less than 1 percent as of this afternoon. This is the second recall of blood pressure medication in recent weeks.

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