Banned: UAE withdraws 3 blood pressure tablets from pharmacies
The UAE Ministry of Health has withdrawn three medicines that may be causing cancer
Dubai: The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) has removed three brands of blood pressure tablets from the UAE market after they were found to contain carcinogenic properties.
The ministry has issued circulars against three brands of medicines that were suspected of causing cancer, and also instructed the withdrawal of a US-manufactured defibrillator that failed to provide an electric current when in use.
According to circular No. 3603 issued by Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, the ministry’s assistant undersecretary for public health policy and licensing, it instructed to withdraw all supplies of the medicine Arbitense 50 and 100mg manufactured by the Abu Dhabi based company Neopharma LLC.
The circular also ordered the withdrawal of the blood pressure tablets Amopress 5mg after reports indicated that it also contained ingredients that were carcinogenic.
The medicines were registered with the Department of Health, and according to the ministry, the manufacturer has requested authorities to withdraw all supplies from the public and private sector.
Pharmacies were instructed to return all batches of the drug back to the supplier.
The ministry also issued circular No. 3604 to withdraw all operations of the blood pressure medicine Hetlosar 50 and 100mg, which was manufactured by the company Nexen Pharma.
The defibrillator ZOLL LifeVest 400, manufactured by the US company Zoll, was banned by the ministry for failing to monitor the patient's heartbeat, and being unable to provide an electric current to restore the patient's heart beat to a normal rhythm when needed.