More than 80,000 packs of a commonly used antidepressant have been recalled across the UK after a patient discovered the wrong medicine inside their sealed packaging.
The patient, who had been prescribed Sertraline 100mg film-coated tablets, found a strip of Citalopram 40mg film-coated tablets – another antidepressant – within the carton.
Following this discovery, UK-based pharmaceutical company Amarox initiated a “precautionary recall” of a particular batch of Sertraline, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said.
The agency said that both medications are manufactured by the same company at the same facility.
The error “appears to have occurred during secondary packaging of the blister strips into the cartons”, it said.
Patients who believe they have already taken any Citalopram 40mg tablets by mistake, or are experiencing side effects, should seek medical advice immediately.
The MHRA said that pharmacists should stop supplying the batch and contact any patients who may have been dispensed the impacted product – Sertraline 100mg tablets batch number V2500425.
The regulator said that the total batch size is 81,872 packs.
Dr Alison Cave, the MHRA’s chief safety officer, said: “If you have been prescribed Sertraline 100mg tablets and have received batch number V2500425, please check the carton contains the right medication.
“You can find the batch number and expiry date printed on the side of the outer packaging.
“If the blister strips inside the carton are labelled Citalopram 40mg, please contact your pharmacy as soon as possible. If they are labelled Sertraline 100mg, no further action is needed.
“Patients who have accidentally taken Citalopram instead of – or as well as – Sertraline, may experience some heightened serotonergic side effects.
“These can include nausea, headache, sleep changes and mild anxiety.”
In 2019, more than 16.7 million prescriptions of Sertraline were prescribed by GPs in England, according to a study.