Other safety alerts
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| The United States: Brintellix (vortioxetine) and Brilinta (ticagrelor): Drug Safety Communication - Name Confusion |
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FDA is warning health care professionals and patients that reports of confusion between the antidepressant Brintellix and anti-blood clotting medication Brilinta have resulted in the wrong medication being prescribed or dispensed. FDA determined that the main reason for the confusion between these two medications is the similarity of their brand (proprietary) names. None of the reports indicates that a patient ingested the wrong medication; however, reports of prescribing and dispensing errors continue.
Brintellix (vortioxetine) is used to treat a certain type of depression called major depressive disorder (MDD) in adults. It is in a class of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Brilinta (ticagrelor) is an antiplatelet, anti-blood clotting medication used to lower the risk of having another heart attack, or dying from a heart problem after a heart attack or severe chest pain.
Health care professionals can reduce the risk of name confusion by including the generic (established) name of the medication, in addition to the brand name, and the indication for use when prescribing these medications. Patients should check their prescriptions to ensure that the correct medication was dispensed.
Please refer to the following website in FDA for details:
http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch/../ucm456569.htm
In Hong Kong, Brintellix Tablets 5mg (HK-63601), 10mg (HK-63600) and 20mg (HK-63599) are pharmaceutical products registered by Lundbeck Export A/S; while Brilinta Tab 90mg (HK-61187) is a pharmaceutical product registered by AstraZeneca Hong Kong Ltd. All products are prescription-only medicines. So far, the Department of Health (DH) has received one case of adverse drug reaction (ADR) on Brilinta, and it was not related to ingestion of the wrong medication. The DH has not received any ADR case on Brintellix. In view of the safety warning by the US FDA, letters to healthcare professionals will be issued to draw their attention to the matter. The DH will remain vigilant on any safety updates of the drugs.
Ends/ Friday, July 31, 2015
Issued at HKT 15:00
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