ZEBULON, N.C. -- A nationwide recall has been announced for inhalers produced by GlaxoSmithKline, LLC, also known as GSK.
Almost 600,000 inhalers are being recalled due to a defective delivery system. A report from the FDA said that some inhalers were "out of specification results for leak rate".
2WTK talked to a pharmacist at Friendly Pharmacy in Greensboro for a translation of that statement. .Sshe said basically this means if for example you normally get 20 doses of medicine in your inhaler... you might only have 17. Each dose would still be correct, but there wouldn't be as many as you paid for.
The recall was classified as a Class II recall that means "the products might cause a temporary health problem, or pose only a slight threat of a serious nature," according to the FDA.
The local pharmacist we talked to said in most cases, you can bring your inhaler to your local pharmacy and exchange it. There are three lot numbers of inhalers affected:
6ZP9848 Expiration 3/18
6ZP0003 Expiration 4/18
6XP9944 Expiration 4/18
The inhalers were made in a plant in Zebulon, North Carolina. The recall is reported to be voluntary and was initiated by GSK.
In 2015, GSK also recalled nearly 129,000 Ventolin inhalers co to concerns of insufficient propellant.
The product is described as: Ventiolin HFA (albuterol sulfate) Inhalation Aerosol, 90 mcg per actuation, 200 metered inhalations, net weight 18 g inhalers, RX only. If you would like to read more on this recall click here.