Several companies are recalling some prescription drugs used to treat patients with high blood pressure to help prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Multiple lots of irbesartan, losartan and valsartan drug products were recalled after tests found an azido impurity above the acceptable limit.
Health Canada reported that the azido impurity is considered a mutagen, or a chemical substance that can cause changes to the DNA of a cell, which in turn can increase the risk of cancer. However, they note the specific risk for the impurity in the recalled products is unknown.
In a news release, Health Canada also noted that "a person taking a drug daily for 70 years that contains this azido impurity at or below the acceptable level is not expected to have an increased risk of cancer."
While not every lot of these drugs from the companies are affected, the recall may affect the supply of some products. Patients are encouraged to speak with their health care providers to discuss alternatives should their prescription become unavailable.
The impacted companies have been told to implement control measures to ensure the level of impurity in their products are at or below the acceptable level, and Health Canada continues to monitor the effectiveness of the recalls.
As there is no immediate risk to patients taking the medications, Canadians are encouraged to continue taking them as prescribed unless advised otherwise by a health care provider.
The full list of affected products can be found here.
