Dubai: The Ministry of Health has advised hospitals and medical directors of districts to restrict use of the drug Domperidone as it causes sudden death or irregular heartbeat among patients over 60 years of age.
It listed 13 medicines, including Motilium and Peridone, that contain Domperidone, and also circulated it to all pharmacies.
Domperidone is not recommended to be used by patients who are suffering from kidney and heart diseases for more than a week, it said.
In his advisory, Dr Ameen Al Amiri, assistant undersecretary for public health policies and licensing at the ministry, noted that the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) had warned breastfeeding women not to use this unapproved drug to increase lactation.
Apparently women (in the US) were purchasing it from pharmacies and foreign sources, the advisory said.
Although Domperidone is approved in several countries outside the US to treat certain gastric disorders, it is not approved in any country, including the US, for enhancing breast milk production.
The advisory noted that the medication may prove fatal for the elderly, especially those patents that take a daily oral dose of more than 30mg. It added that the Domperidone dose may be reduced to 10mg up to three times daily orally for both adults and adolescents weighing more than 35kg.
