Aspirin to carry alert for under-16s
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Your support makes all the difference.Parents were warned yesterday not to give aspirin to any child under 16 because of the risk of Reye's syndrome, a rare but potentially fatal liver condition.
Packs of aspirin already carry a warning that they should not be given to children under 12 but the Medicines Control Agency announced yesterday that it proposed to raise the age limit to 16. The causes of Reye's syndrome are not fully understood but it affects mainly children and adolescents and is commonest in children under five. It has been linked with aspirin given to children with a viral fever.
The Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) warned this year that aspirin should be avoided by children aged 12 to 15 if they were had a fever. Aspirin use is banned for children under 12. That advice is now thought to be confusing and the MCA has decided to simplify it by extending the ban on aspirin use by under-12s to those under 16, except on the advice of a doctor.
Professor Alasdair Breckenridge, the CSM chairman, said: "The risk of Reye's in ages 12 to 15 is very small but there have been concerns that earlier advice was too complex for products available on general sale – in the supermarket and corner shop – requiring a diagnosis of fever by a parent or minor. There are plenty of analgesic products containing paracetamol and ibuprofen for this age group not associated with Reye's syndrome. There is simply no need to expose those under 16 to the risk, however small."
The proposal, which is out to consultation for eight weeks, is for a legal requirement for aspirin packs to carry a warning about Reye's syndrome in children under 16.
Professor Breckenridge added: "I want to be very clear there is no cause for panic or concern but I also want to ensure parents and children are kept well-nformed and are aware of the importance of this warning. Anyone who has any questions should talk to a pharmacist."
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