The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), announced that the pharmaceutical company Aurobindo Pharma is recalling a blood pressure medication because of a potential cancer risk. The company is recalling two lots of quinapril and hydrochlorothiazide tablets because of the levels of nitrosamine. The tablets are most commonly prescribed for the treatment of hypertension to decrease blood pressure.
According to US FDA reports, low levels of nitrosamine, are commonly found in water and food, including grilled and cured meats, vegetables, and dairy products, and high levels of exposure to nitrosamine have been linked with an elevated risk of cancer.
According to the US FDA, the medications are scored, round-shaped, pink-colour, biconvex, film-coated tablets, and are debossed with D on the scored side, and also on the other side. According to advisory on the US FDA website, the patients should contact their doctor and healthcare provider about whether to continue taking their medication or consider an alternative treatment to return their medication.
So far, the US FDA has reported no adverse events have been linked to the issue. This voluntary recall of the company was announced by the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the US Department of Agriculture (DOA).
