Blood Pressure Medication Recall 2019: Expanded Recall Issued For Cancer-Causing Impurity

Blood Pressure Recall 43 Lots — Legacy Pharmaceutical Packaging recalled 43 lots of 25 mg, 50 mg, and 100 mg Losartan Potassium tablets for a possible cancer-causing risk. 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

Expanding its April 25 blood pressure medication recall, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. (TEVA) has issued a voluntary recall of another six lots of losartan potassium tablets because of a cancer-causing impurity. Losartan potassium is used in the treatment of patients with hypertension, hypertensive with left ventricular hypertrophy, and nephropathy in Type 2 diabetes.

The recalled medication has a higher than allowable level of N-Nitroso-N-methyl-4-aminobutyric acid (NMBA), which has a potential risk of developing cancer in some patients with long-term use.

The bulk lots of losartan potassium tablets were sold exclusively to Golden State Medical Supply, Inc., which packaged and distributed the medication for retail in bottles of 30, 90, and 1,000 tablets.

The recalled medication was produced as green, film-coated, oval-shaped, biconvex tablets in USP 50 mg with LK 50 on one side and > on the other side. The USP 100 mg tablets are dark green, film-coated, oval-shaped biconvex tablets with LK100 on one side and > on the other side.

A full list of the recalled blood pressure medication can be viewed here. Labels of the recalled medication can be viewed here.

Patients that have been prescribed the recalled losartan potassium tablets should continue to take the medication as the risk of stopping treatment without an alternative treatment plan is higher than continuing to take the affected medication. Patients should contact their pharmacist, physician, or medical provider for an alternative treatment plan.

Patients with medical-related questions, or to report an adverse effect from the recalled blood pressure medication, can contact Teva Medical Information by phone at 1-888-838-2872, option 3, then option 4. Calls may be made Monday through Friday from 9:00 am. To 5:00 p.m. EST. Voicemail is available 24/7. Emails can be sent to druginfo@tevapharm.com.

Shares of Teva Pharmaceuticals stock were down 5.29 percent as of 11:46 a.m. ET on Wednesday.