Connection Between Tylenol and Liver Failure Explored
July 21, 2001
The Federal government is considering requiring sobering new warnings on the use of the popular over-the-counter painkiller acetaminophen. The ingredient is increasingly linked with life-threatening liver damage. Tylenol is the best-known acetaminophen product.
A researcher at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas explored the incidences of acetaminophen overdoses in the United States. Dr. William Lee found that acetaminophen overdoses might actually be responsible for more cases of liver damage and failure than some prescription medications recently recalled because of similar problems.
Because acetaminophen is a non-prescription drug, Dr. Lee found that people believe it is safe to take in any amount. His research revealed that individuals are taking doses exceeding maximum limits over extended periods.
Dr. Lee investigated 300 separate incidents of acute liver failure at hospitals throughout the country. He found that 38% were linked to acetaminophen use.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials, who recently began studying acetaminophen's risks, were surprised by the results of Lee's study.
The FDA already requires labels warning of the danger in mixing Tylenol and other acetaminophen products with alcohol. That decision was made after Tylenol's manufacturer lost an $8 million suit to a Virginia drinker claiming that Tylenol caused his liver to fail, necessitating a transplant.
Tylenol manufacturer McNeil Consumer Healthcare calls its product one of the safest over-the-counter medications on the market. McNeil insists that liver failure only occurs in rare circumstances and then only with substantial overdoses. The company stressed that millions of people use Tylenol safely everyday.
Critics want new warnings explicitly mentioning the possibility of acute liver failure caused by Tylenol.
-- Article Courtesy of InjuryBoard.com
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