The Food and Drug Administration has reissued its warning that buying prescription drugs online can be dangerous after preliminary tests detected haloperidol in certain drugs purchased over the Internet.
Preliminary analyses determined that some orders of zolpidem (Ambien), alprazolam (Xanax), escitalopram (Lexapro), and lorazepam (Ativan), obtained by U.S. consumers over the Internet, actually contained the antipsychotic drug haloperidol (Haldol), the agency said in a statement. The statement refers to reports of people who've had emergency medical treatment for symptoms such as muscle spasms, difficulty breathing, and muscle stiffness after taking the pills.
Although the affected consumers named several Web sites through which the products were purchased, identifying the vendors “is difficult because of the deceptive practices of many commercial outlets on the Internet,” according to the statement. The packages containing these products were postmarked in Greece, but that may not be where they originated. The investigation is continuing, the statement said.
Photographs of the tablets that contained haloperidol are available at www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/photos/haloperidol.htmlwww.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/medwatch-online.htm
Information on buying medication online is provided at www.fda.gov/buyonline