Baxter Castlebar products contaminated

Small number of Baxter products contaminated


Rowan Gallagher

PRODUCTION has been stopped in a wing of Baxter Castlebar after a contaminant was detected in dialysis products made at the facility.
Two tanks in the Castlebar manufacturing plant have been closed after cracks were found that harboured germs that led to the infection of the life saving products.
In a statement issued from the European Medicines Agency it was stated that Baxter could not recall all the products but that they would be phased out until there were repairs done in the production tanks.
“The European Medicines Agency has been informed by Baxter that the problem of presence of endotoxins in peritoneal dialysis (PD) solutions has not been solved and that it cannot guarantee the production of endotoxin-free solutions from a production line at its Castlebar plant,” the statement read.
The company maintains that the affected number of products is very low but that there is a risk to patients. A full review was carried out in the County Town plant as a result.
The product which is exported from the Mayo plant all over Europe is now being shipped in from the USA, Canada, Turkey and Singapore.
The company is hoping to minimise the problem by reducing usage of the product but is not recalling the item as there is no alternative replacement for the contaminated life saving treatments on the market.
The cost of the contamination to the multinational is not yet known but in the first three quarters of 2010 the company declared that 15 per cent of all sales came from the manufacture of the the peritoneal-dialysis therapy.
In November of 2010, 200 jobs were shed at the largest employer in the county as a cost containment measure to increase functionality of the manufacturing plant into the future.
The affected products may contain what are medically called ‘endotoxins’ - a byproduct of bacteria that has died. When the bacteria dies it releases the toxin that can cause the immune system to fight it causing inflammation, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and possibly fever.
Anyone who is in doubt about their use of any suspected products is advised to contact their local GP.