Hi Lactnetters:
By way of introduction, I am a new LC who is also a lawyer, a LLL leader
and a mom of three children ages 11 to 3 years. I have been enjoying the
wisdom of Lactnet. A fellow LC and I were about to purchase some tubing
for nursing supplementers when we became aware of the following news
release. Does anyone know anything about this and what this means for
nursing supplementers (and for all tube feeding, for that matter)?
Ellen Maughan, JD, IBCLC
New Jersey
Health Canada Panel Warns That Plasticizer in PVC Medical Devices May
Harm
Developing Babies, Infants, Boys
WASHINGTON, Jan. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- A Health Canada Expert Advisory Panel
recommends that health care providers not use DEHP containing devices in
the
treatment of pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, infants, males before
puberty and patients undergoing cardiac bypass, hemodialysis or heart
transplant surgery. In a report that was finalized on January 11 and
posted
on the Health Canada website today, the expert panel also named certain
patient groups and medical procedures that require urgent action:
Alternate measures are immediately justifiable and should be
introduced as quickly as possible to protect those sub-populations
at greatest risk, namely the fetus, newborns, infants and young
children receiving transfusions, ECMO, cardiopulmonary by-pass,
exchange transfusion, hemodialysis, TPN {Total Parenteral Nutrition}
and lipophilic drug formulations.
The Health Canada report follows a September 2001 FDA Safety Assessment
on
DEHP (di-2-ethylhexyl-phthalate), the plasticizer used to soften PVC
medical
products such as bags and tubing. The US report found that DEHP may not
be
safe for infants, children and adults receiving certain medical
treatments
that involve PVC medical devices.
"The Health Canada expert panel report is the strongest call to action
yet on
PVC medical devices softened with DEHP," said Charlotte Brody, RN,
Director
of Health Care Without Harm. "The FDA assessment said there is a problem.
The
Health Canada panel report tells health care providers what to do about
the
problem-to label all products with DEHP and to do what we can to keep it
away
from certain patient groups and all pregnant women, babies and boys."
The expert panel recognizes that "alternative products are already
available"
for some DEHP-containing products and encourages research into
alternatives
for other products.
"The Health Canada panel is wisely recommending a course of action that
insures that patients receive needed medical therapies," said Ted
Schettler,
MD, Science Director of the Science and Environmental Health Network.
"But
when we have alternatives to DEHP softened medical devices, and in nearly
all
cases we do, we should be using them."
The full report is posted on the Health Canada website:
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hpb-dgps/therapeut/zfiles/english/advcomm/eap/dehp
/eap-
dehp-final-report-2002-jan-11-e.pdf .
For more information, visit http://www.noharm.org or call Health Care
Without
Harm at +1-202-234-0091.
http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X10748277
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