The Kaohsiung Department of Health yesterday said that four doctors have been found to have improperly prescribed the sedative phenobarbital, the most widely used barbiturate medication in Taiwan.
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said that after children at a preschool chain in New Taipei City earlier this month tested positive for traces of phenobarbital, Kaohsiung on June 8 launched an inspection of the chain’s branches in the city.
It also conducted a survey on the use of phenobarbital at the 2,702 hospitals, clinics and pharmacies in the city.
Photo: Wang Jung-hsiang, Taipei Times
“Preliminary findings show that four physicians improperly prescribed the drug to patients,” he said.
“They have been fined NT$110,000 to NT$330,000 and their clinics have been closed for one to six months,” he said.
Chen said phenobarbital is used to control seizures, according to the medical guidelines for prescribing the drug.
However, the doctors prescribed drugs containing phenobarbital to treat the common cold, acute respiratory infection and colic, he said, adding that the patients included infants under two years old.
Starting yesterday, the health department said it would notify patients who have received a phenobarbital prescription at the four clinics over the past month, or children and adolescents under 18 years old who received a phenobarbital prescription three times at the clinics in the past six months, and offer them a free medical checkup at four designated hospitals in the city.
The designated hospitals are Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital (KMUH), Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and E-Da Hospital.
Parents of children who experience symptoms including sleepiness, dizziness or an unsteady gait can call the health department’s hotline at (07)-723-0250 for a health consultation and medical referral, Chen said.
Kaohsiung Department of Health Deputy Director-General Pan Chao-ying (潘炤穎) said one of the clinics has been improperly prescribing phenobarbital for more than five years, and a clinic had prescribed the drug to more than 20 non-seizure patients this year.
He said the department has gathered evidence, interviewed the implicated doctors and held three specialist meetings to discuss the cases before imposing the penalties on Friday.
KMUH Department of Pediatrics director Hsu Jong-hau (徐仲豪) said using phenobarbital to treat colic in infants is not common practice and is not recommended, as it can cause adverse side effects including drowsiness and restlessness.
The elimination half-life of phenobarbital is about three to five days, so if it is used for a short period, it should be metabolized and removed from the body in about three to four weeks, he said, adding that long-term use of the drug to treat seizures should be monitored by a pediatrician.
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