We Rarely Note FDA Product Recalls, But This Is A High Impact Generic -- Millions Of Americans Take It, Daily -- For High Cholesterol. So Do Check Your Vials.

We return to a minor power alley item, on this sunny Fall Saturday morning, here:

Please check with all your senior / known high cholesterol relatives who might be on statins. . . and screen the bottles in the home -- if they are taking the cheaper generics, of any brand. Better always, to be safe here, now -- than. . . sorry, later, right? Right.

Here is one of dozens of stories on the recall, this morning (but very few are printing the specific lots involved):

. . .[Hundreds of] thousands of bottles of a popular and widely used cholesterol drug are being voluntarily recalled for "failed dissolution specifications," which suggests the drugs did not properly dissolve at a standard rate and could lead to a reduction in the drug's effectiveness.

According to an enforcement report from the Food and Drug Administration, 141,984 bottles of Atorvastatin Calcium Tablet — a generic for Lipitor — which were manufactured by Alkem Laboratories, were recalled by distributor Ascend Laboratories on Sept. 19.

On Oct 10, the recall was classified as a "Class II," which means the product "may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences. . . ."

If you are on any generic version of Pfizer's Lipitor^® (or any statin -- if you are uncertain), do check your lot numbers -- against this grid in the image at right.

Namaste -- and onward, smiling -- still never taking any prescription medicine of any kind. [And, knock on wood -- I will never need to. Exercise, and lucky genetics -- life-long. My primary care guy says I'm the only patient (at my age) he sees who is on zero meds, of any kind. Hilarious!]

नमस्ते