Methadone Law Blog

Heparin overdoses have caused the death of an infant and has injured at least 16 children at a hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas. The children were administered 1,000 times higher the prescribed amount of the blood thinning drug. The overdose has lead to the death of one of the infants, and leaves another in critical condition. Nurses at the hospital administered 10,000 units of heparin instead of the prescribed 10 units per child. The mistake wasn’t caught until two days later.

Hospital officials state that it is unclear what role heparin played in the infant’s death and an autopsy is planned to determine whether Heparin was the leading cause.

Three of the 15 remaining children have been discharged from the hospital, while the other 12 remain in stable condition in the intensive care unit.

The additional 250 reported cases of heparin overdoses in children under the age of 1 year over the past 18 months, coupled with the recall of the contaminated drug from manufacturers in China which lead to more than 80 reported deaths in the past year only reinforces the need for more stringent drug administration policies in the US.

If you or a loved one were the victim of a severe allergic reaction or death after being administered Heparin you can have an experienced attorney from my firm investigate your potential case.

Posted by Edward Shensky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Drug Interaction , News

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In addition to Stark & Stark's Methadone Injury Litigation Team, the firm also fights on behalf of people who have been injured by defective drugs such as Heparin. Currently our lawyers are investigating Heparin injury claims by those hurt through the administration of contaminated Heparin.

Earlier this year Heparin was recalled after more than 80 people died and hundreds more suffered sever allergic reactions to the tainted blood thinning drug.

If you or a loved one were victim of a severe allergic reaction or death after being administered Heparin you can have an experienced attorney from my firm investigate your potential case.

Posted by Michael G. Donahue, III | Permalink | Email This Post

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State police at Lehighton and the state Department of Public Welfare are looking into the recent death of 16-year-old Katherine Rice of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Rice, and her friend were staying at the KidsPeace group home for troubled youths who have substance abuse problems. On April 16, 2008 the girls stole methadone pills from a counselor at the facility and later that evening began taking the pills.

As the girls began to take the pills, but feel no immediate effect, they continued to take pills throughout the night in hopes of feeling the high associated with prescription pain medications. However, instead of getting the high they desired, they fell into comas and were taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital. Rice passed away two weeks after falling into the coma, and her friend remains in the hospital in satisfactory condition.

Investigators are looking into why the methadone pills were at a facility for substance abuse patients in the first place, and more importantly, how the obvious lack of supervision allowed the teens to steal the drugs.

This is just one more example of why we need to implement stricter guidelines for the distribution of methadone. The pills have drastically devastating results and yet continue to get into the wrong hands time and time again.

You can read more on this story here.

Posted by Edward Shensky | Permalink | Email This Post

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The drug Digitek, used to treat heart failure and abnormal heart rhythms, has been recalled. According to a press release from the US Food and Drug Administration, the voluntary nationwide recall was initiated after reports surfaced that patients taking Digitek were suffering from serious illness, injuries and death.

The recall is linked to the distribution of double strength tablets which could lead to digitalis toxicity in patients with renal failure, as well as other serious side effects.

If you or someone you know has suffered from a Digitek related injury or death, you should contact an experienced injury lawyer in order to have your potential claim reviewed.

Posted by Edward Shensky | Permalink | Email This Post

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A hospital in California received a $25,000 fine after distributing a list of medications to the wrong patient, which resulted in the death of an 87-year-old woman in August. The Fremont, CA resident was brought to Washington Hospital and was diagnosed with heart failure, dementia and shortness of breath. Several hours later she was given methadone, Lexapro, Zestril and Desipramine which were intended to be given to another patient.

Shortly after taking the medications, the patient began experiencing hallucinations. When doctors reviewed her charts, they questioned why she had been given methadone (which is normally prescribed for pain management among other things) after never having mentioned she was in pain. That’s when the hospital realized she had been given the wrong set of medications.

The incorrect mix of medications, partnered with her already weakened state, lowered the patient’s blood pressure and caused her to become lethargic. Doctors moved the patient to the intensive care unit of the hospital, but were too late. The patient died just two days after having been admitted.

The California Department of Public Health issued 12 additional fines for similar cases throughout the state last week. The fines are intended to increase the care and attention paid towards patients in order to decrease policy and procedural errors that jeopardize the health and well-being of patients, and in some unfortunate cases, lead to their death.

Posted by Paul N. Daly | Permalink | Email This Post

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Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have concluded that methadone is a possible cause of sudden cardiac death. The study determined that sudden cardiac death could be caused by methadone even when it was taken at therapeutic levels for relief of chronic pain or drug addiction withdrawal. The study's findings were based on an evaluation of all sudden cardiac deaths in the greater Portland, Oregon metropolitan area between 2002 and 2006 where detailed autopsies were performed.

The analysis was based on a comparison of two case groups. One group consisted of 22 sudden cardiac deaths in which toxicology screens turned up 1 mg or less of methadone which is defined as therapeutic level. The cases were then compared to a second group of 106 cases where no evidence of methadone was found. In the first case group, 17 of the 22 subjects had no significant cardiac abnormalities. On the other hand, 60% of the case group where no methadone is present had identifiable evidence of cardiac disease or structural abnormalities. "The unexpectedly high proportion of otherwise unexplained sudden deaths in the therapeutic methadone group points to a significant contribution of this drug towards the occurrence of sudden cardiac death among these patients" said Sumeet Chugh, M.D. lead investigator, Director of OHSU's Cardiac Arrhythmia Center, and Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine in the OHSU School of Medicine. Individual case reports have linked methadone to a rare ventricular arrhythmia, known as torsade de pointes, which can degenerate into ventricular fibrillation leading to sudden death in the absence of medical intervention.

The researchers have proposed that a large prospective evaluation of methadone therapy be undertaken since a sizable and growing number of people are utilizing methadone for both pain management and drug addiction.

Posted by Michael G. Donahue, III | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Drug Interaction , News , Research

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The associated press reported on December 20, 2007 that a Kansas physician, Dr. Stephen J. Schneider, and his clinic, Schneider Medical Clinic, were indicted by a Topeka grand jury on charges including unlawful distribution of a controlled substance and health care fraud. According to the indictment, the doctor and his assistants illegally issued prescriptions for narcotic painkillers, muscles relaxers, and other such medications, including Methadone. It also alleges that fraudulent claims for health care benefits were filed by the doctor’s clinic. If convicted of certain of the charges, Dr. Schneider would reportedly face 20 years to life in prison.

While Dr. Schneider is not charged with murder by the indictment, U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren reportedly said that the defendant(s) “emphasized volume over quality of care” and that the doctor callously referred to patients who died from overdoses as “‘bad grapes’”. According to the indictment, fifty-six (56) of the doctor’s patients have died from overdoses of prescription drugs in the last five (5) years. The clinic reportedly operated seven (7) days a week, for eleven (11) hours a day, and scheduled patients only ten (10) minutes apart. Using this churn and burn “mill” approach to “care”, the clinic succeeded in billing more than $4.24 million to heath benefit programs, including Medicare and Medicaid.

The huge billings referenced in the indictment of the Schneider Medical Clinic may explain, in part, the tremendous surge in prescriptions of Methadone which have occurred at pain management clinics in recent years. Given the large number of medications and substances which interact negatively with Methadone, and the fact that patients must be closely and carefully monitored for life-threatening side effects associated with its use - particularly when the medication is first introduced, it is not surprising that a clinic which “emphasize[s] volume over quality care” produced so many deaths. Unfortunately, this clinic is but one example of a serious and growing problem concerning Methadone and other narcotic pain killers here in the United States.

Posted by Mark W. Davis | Permalink | Email This Post

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In December 2007 the DEA announced it was relaxing the restrictions previously placed on physician prescriptions of schedule II narcotics. In the wake of the change, prescriptions for Methadone, Oxycontin, Morphine and other such drugs can now provide patients with as much as a 90-day supply of medication. Previously, prescriptions for these medications were limited to 30-day supplies; a restriction which was reportedly put in place to curtail the potential for abuse of schedule II drugs. Given the dangers associated with these medications, as findings from organizations such as the National Institute on Drug Abuse that non-medical use/abuse of prescription drugs is a serious and growing health issue in this country, this action by the DEA seems ill-advised.

Methadone, which is among the schedule II narcotics affected by the rule change, has been linked to a steadily increasing number of deaths in recent years. According to statistics cataloged in reports issued by various agencies and governmental organizations, including the Justice Dept. and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA), there has been an alarming rise in Methadone-related deaths (approximately 390% between 1999 and 2004 alone) which correlate to a widening in the scope of the drug’s use. According to the DEA, the number of practitioners authorized to distribute methadone has increased more than 700% since 2001. The increase in its use as an alternative treatment for chronic pain has closely paralleled each of these statistics.

The DEA’s decision, reportedly made in response to pressure from various lobbying groups, has been denounced by activist groups such as HARMD (Helping America Reduce Methadone Deaths). The group had reportedly assembled a petition condemning the decision.

Posted by Mark W. Davis | Permalink | Email This Post

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The DEA and pharmaceutical manufacturers have reach agreement that action must be taken to reduce the increase in methadone related deaths.

As of January 1, 2008, manufacturers of methadone have agreed to restrict distribution of 40 mg tablets. Methadone was previously available in 5 mg, 10 mg and 40 mg tablet formulations. The 40 mg formulation is not FDA approved for use in pain management. Under an agreement reached with the DEA, 40 mg tablets will only be available to facilities authorized for detoxification or maintenance treatment of opiod addiction. Methadone manufacturers have instructed their distributors to discontinue supplying these tablets to other facilities such as pharmacies.

Posted by Michael G. Donahue, III | Permalink | Email This Post

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Methadone is a drug used in the treatment of chronic pain and opiate addition. While it has been used with varying degrees of success since the 1950s, a recent Justice Dept. report has documented that deaths associated with its use have been increasing at an alarming rate in recent years. You can read the Methadone Diversion, Abuse, and Misuse: Deaths Increasing at Alarming Rate assessment here.

The National Drug Intelligence Center's assessment concluded that reports of methadone related poisonings increased more than 350% between 1999 and 2004, climbing from 786 reported deaths in 1999 to nearly 4000 in 2004. The report and other similar data indicate that these increases are not limited to this time frame, but rather have continued to rise.

The increase in documented adverse events parallel an increased use of the medication to treat conditions other than opiate addition, most notably chronic pain. In the wake of this disturbing trend, the FDA issued a public health advisory concerning methadone in November 2006 which noted that a dose of methadone can remain active in the body for as much as 59 hours and thus, may build up in the body and reach toxic levels. This fact, as well as the number of medications and substances which can negatively interact with methadone, and other similar factors can produce dire consequences if the medication is not administered properly and under close supervision.

Methadone and other opioid deaths, 1999-2004

Posted by Mark W. Davis | Permalink | Email This Post

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Today, methadone is killing more Americans than heroin. In 2004, there were 3,849 reported deaths involving methadone in the United States. This astounding death toll could be significantly reduced according to Rick Sponaugle, Medical Director of Florida Detox, by using a version of the drug currently available in Germany.

The fatal and therapeutic methadone doses are almost the same for many methadone patients. In fact, methadone patients are 7 times more likely to die from a methadone overdose during the first two weeks of methadone treatment. It is during this period that their individual response to methadone is determined.

Eliminating S methadone from the mixture of R and S methadone used in the United States could reduce deadly cardiac arrhythmias and decrease the dangerous, unpredictable variations in methadone therapeutic dose between individuals. The most common route of administration at a methadone clinic is in a racemic oral solution, though in Germany, only the (R)-methadone enantiomer has traditionally been used, as it is responsible for most of the desired opioid effects.

Dr. Sponaugle, a physician Board Certified in Addiction Medicine and Anesthesiology, observed that "replacing R/S methadone with safer R methadone would reduce methadone cardiotoxicity and dangerous methadone half life variations{.}" He encourages the FDA to expedite any approvals required for R methadone to be prescribed in the United States. Dr. Sponaugle also favors measures such as requiring physicians to obtain additional training and certification before they are allowed to prescribe methadone.

Posted by Michael G. Donahue, III | Permalink | Email This Post

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The American Society of Anesthesiology has recently expressed concern regarding the high number of methadone-related deaths. A campaign entitled “Zero Unintentional Deaths” was begun to try to lesson the likelihood of death when methadone is prescribed for pain relief. It was developed to educate physicians, chronic pain sufferers and other interested individuals about the increasingly serious issue of unintentional overdose deaths relating to methadone as well as other prescription medications. The goal of the campaign was to remedy unintentional deaths without compromising access to treatment of pain.

A program entitled “Six Steps to Zero,” six specific hazards were addressed. They are as follows:

1. Never take a prescription painkiller unless it is prescribed to you.
2. Do not take pain medicine with alcohol.
3. Do not take more doses than prescribed.
4. Use of other sedative or anti-anxiety medications can be dangerous.
5. Avoid using narcotic medications to facilitate sleep.
6. Lock up prescription painkillers.

It is hoped that if these six steps are followed the rate of unintentional methadone related deaths could be reduced.

The Zero Unintentional Death campaign appears here and can be reached through Zero Unintentional Deaths c/o Life Source, 617 East 3900 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84106.

Posted by Michael G. Donahue, III | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Pain Management

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