Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Shortage of injectable hydrocortisone sodium succinate

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists reports a shortage of injectable hydrocortisone sodium succinate. When your body's immune response is killing you or causing you suffering, this injectable steroid will sometimes save your life or alleviate symptoms while another treatment is started. In the case of a life-threatening allergic reaction (anaphylactic shock), it will help you survive. It will also help you through the acute phase of a disease such as ulcerative colitis until a longer-term treatment can take effect. Here is Hospira's drug information sheet. I recommend reading the many uses for this drug. This shortage has probably arisen as a sequel to the Shortage of injectable methylprednisolone acetate.

I find it interesting that Hospira cites lack of manufacturing capacity for their shortage. This is the first time I have noticed something more specific than "manufacturing delays." One thing to keep in mind is that lack of manufacturing capacity can mean that the production line is being used for some other product. The questions are, what product is being manufactured instead, and why? Is the shortage due to negotiations with a contract production company? The answers to these questions are usually unavailable to the public. Manufacturing capacity is also lost when all or part of a facility is shut down because of violations of Good Manufacturing Practices. Pfizer does not give a reason for the shortage of their brand name version, Solu-Cortef.

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