Last week, Johnson & Johnson announced a recall of 57,000 units of Topamax. The recall of the prescription epilepsy medication stems from multiple reports of an “uncharacteristic odor” which is apparently linked to trace amounts of tribromoanisole, or TBA for short. According to the Johnson & Johnson Topamax Recall Notice, “TBA is a byproduct of a chemical preservative sometimes applied to wood often used in the construction of pallets on which products are transported and stored.” As a Fort Lauderdale Products Liability Attorney, I understand the severity of this recall, because we trust our medication to be beneficial for our health, when in certain cases like this one, it might actually be detrimental. Luckily, as of yet there haven’t been any overly serious illnesses reported, just some incidents of stomach pain among other like symptoms.
For those who might be affected by this recall, you can find the FDA Topamax Recall Release here. Along those lines, as a Fort Lauderdale Products Liability Attorney, I truly hope that this recall is a precautionary measure and that no one who takes this medication experiences any harmful side effects. The recall is contained to only two production lots, but that is still 57,000 bottles, which means that a lot of people could potentially be affected if the odor is linked to something more serious.
Hopefully anyone who takes this medication receives word of the recall before continuing to take it. As a Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Attorney, I have seen first hand cases of what can happen when our medicine isn’t safe and the consequences are sometimes very severe. A recall is always necessary to alert the public of the potential harm and to attempt to remove the product from the shelves before other people purchase it.
Unfortunately, recalls have become far too common for Johnson & Johnson recently. The Wall Street Journal has even been keeping a list of all recent Johnson & Johnson recalls. From a Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Lawyer’s perspective, this string of recalls clearly isn’t good for Johnson & Johnson and not good for consumers because these allegedly defective products should not be making it to the marketplace with such frequency.
