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The FDA is issuing more warnings about a popular pain killer. We are talking about acetominophen,
the active ingreident in drugs like Tylenol. Here to talk about warnings and what they
mean: Andy Crouppen from Brown and Crouppen. And I just did that with a-see-tuh... because
I always said a-see-tuh-MY-o-fen and that is wrong. A-see-tuh-MIN-o-fen. Right?
Right. How are you?
I'm better now. I'm better now. Now when the FDA says to prescription drug companies, "We
want you to put a boxed warning on your drugs." Now boxed warning sounds like, "Okay, that's
no big deal", but it is.
It is. This is the most serious warning they offer. This is probably the last step before
pulling something from the market -- although it is hard to believe they would pull Tylenol.
I have been preaching for years -- everyone who knows me is sick of it; nobody believes
me -- Tylenol... acetominophen and Tylenol are one of the most dangerous over-the-counter
drugs you can take because the margin of error is so small. You don't have to take much too
much of it, and it is easy to do to have serious complications.
And I don't think I new how common it was in terms of overdoses.
Right. Right. I mean people typically think of overdoses as people taking, you know, a
whole bottle of pills. What can happen is lets say you have a little bit of a cold,
and you take some Dayquil during the day to kind of get you going, but you still have
a little headache so you take a little Tylenol as well. You are feeling a little better.
You go out to lunch. Maybe after lunch you have an upset stomach, you take a little Alka
Seltzer. It effects everyone differently, but that right there is enough for some people
to potentially need a liver transplant. It is very easy to overdose on acetominophen.
And that is the number one cause of liver transplants.
In the United States, acetominophen is by far the number one cause of acute liver failure.
People dont...
My goodness.
Yeah... you think of other things, alcohol, other things, other toxins that we put in
our body. Tylenol.
And so do we know what the boxed warning will say? And what if we are taking now?
Well, it will basically let you know that if you take too much of this, it could cause
liver failure. Most people have no idea... when I tell people, "Listen, if you've been
drinking, I don't care if it is the next morning, if you still have a little bit of alcohol
in your system, don't take Tyelnol." People think I'm crazy, I sound like some lunatic.
Finally, I think I am going to be vindicated amongst my friends because it is getting out
there in the media. You are going to see a lot of lawyers and doctors kind of putting
this warning in people's heads now.
And because it is in so many different things, a boxed warning on one product, is that going
to give us a the understanding that we need to not possibly overdose.
I hope so. I think it is important. Anytime you take any medication, please look at the
ingredients, ask the pharmacist, they are invaluable resources. When you go to Walgreens,
they are not just there to count 10 pills and put it in a bottle. They have extensive
medical training and they know these drugs. Ask them what interacts with what. It is important.
Any prescription medication that ends in a "cet" (Percocet, that kind of stuff). The
"cet" stands for "acetominophen". That has acetominophen in it. So Vicodin. It is in
many, many things we take. Children's medications: Make sure you are not giving your children
too much of this. It is way more serious than anyone ever let you know, probably because
it is a brand name and they want to protect it.
Absolutely, and something that you are so used to taking. So read the labels, and even
if you are buing over the counter, talk to your pharmacist.
And if anybody has any questions, has some liver issues or knows someone who does, we
are handling these claims, and people can call our office just with any questions they
have.
All right. Thank you very much.
Thank you.
If you have a legal question for Brown and Crouppen, e-mail us at GreatDay@KMOV.com.
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