Safety Warning Issued for Pain Patches

Pain patients who use prescription pain patches and also have small children in the home need to take special precautions to prevent possible illness and death. As a result of reports of children becoming seriously ill or dying from accidental exposure to skin patches containing the pain reliever fentanyl, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a safety alert. Most of the accidental exposures have involved children less than two years old.

The FDA alert warns patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals about the proper storage and disposal of fentanyl patches.

The fentanyl transdermal system, known as fentanyl patches and marketed under the brand name Duragesic, treats patients in constant pain by releasing the powerful opioid pain killer fentanyl through the skin over a three-day period.

FDA officials said when young children either swallow the patches or applies it to their skin it can cause a drug overdose. It can cause death by slowing down the child's breathing and by increasing the levels of carbon dioxide in the child's blood.

FDA Recommends Precautions

To reduce accidental exposure to fentanyl by children, FDA recommends these precautions:

• Keep fentanyl in a secure location out of sight and reach of children.
• Cover the patch with an adhesive film to make sure it does not come off.
• Check the patch frequently to make sure it is still in place.

Proper Disposal of Fentanyl

Even after a fentanyl patch has been worn for three days, it can still contain up to 50% of its dose of pain killer, the FDA said. Therefore proper disposal of the patches is critical if young children are around.

The FDA recommends folding the patches in half - so that their sticky sides meet and stick together - then flushing them down the toilet. The patches should not be placed in the household trash or garbage, the agency says.

^{Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration. "Fentanyl Patch Can Be Deadly to Children." Consumer Updates 19 April 2012.}

Related Information:

• Fentanyl Pain Patch Abuse Can Be Deadly
  
• Fentanyl Patches Recalled for Overdose Risk
  
• Basic Facts About Fentanyl

^{Photo: FDA}