02 | 6 | 2008 Posted By Regan Zambri & Long
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Thousands of Pediatric ER Visits Linked to Cough and Cold Medications Each Year: New Study

Each year more than 7,000 children 11 years of age or younger visit hospital emergency rooms due to incidents involving over-the-counter cough and cold medications.  Two-thirds of those incidents involve kids taking the medications without adult supervision.  The findings are the result of recent research published in the journal Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

According to survey data, most children did not require admission to the hospital as a result of their injuries, although 25% did require hospital treatment to eliminate the medicine from their bodies. 

Currently, over-the-counter pediatric cough and cold medications have been voluntarily removed from the market while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) works to determine the safety of these drugs for children. 

To reduce the risk of accidental overdose or poisoning related to over-the-counter medications in your home, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the following safety tips:

  • "Follow directions on the label when you give or take medicines. Read all warning labels. Some medicines cannot be taken safely when you take other medicines or drink alcohol.
  • Turn on a light when you give or take medicines at night so that you know you have the correct amount of the right medicine.
  • Keep medicines in their original bottles or containers.
  • Never share or sell your prescription drugs.
  • Keep opioid pain medications, such as methadone and oxycodone, in a safe place that can only be reached by people who take or give them.
  • Monitor the use of medicines prescribed for children and teenagers, such as medicines for attention deficit disorder, or ADD.
  • Be careful when you dispose of drugs that can be abused, such as opioid pain medication and psychotherapeutic drugs. Drug users may look in the the trash for them. Ask your pharmacist if he or she can take back old or expired medicines as well as any that you don’t need."

    • Previously on the DC Metro Area Medical Malpractice Law Blog, we have posted articles related to:

    For information about your legal rights, please click here or call the law firm of Regan Zambri & Long, PLLC at 202-463-3030.

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