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Painkillers banned in the UK linked to expat deaths in Spain

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The dangerous drug is widely sold all across Spain under the brand name Nolotil

Painkillers banned in the UK linked to expat deaths in Spain

The Association of Drug Affected Patients (ADAF) is suing the Spanish government after several British expats and holidaymakers became seriously ill and even died after taking the painkiller metamizole, which is widely sold in Spain under the brand name Nolotil.

The patients group claims the drug, which is banned in the UK, the US, India and Australia, led to sepsis, organ failure and amputations in at least 350 people between 1996 and 2023, 170 of whom were Britons either living or holidaying in Spain at the time.

ADAF has also discovered more than 40 fatalities that it believes could be related to taking the painkiller and has demanded tighter controls over the controversial drug. Worryingly, a recent study indicates that Irish and British patients could be more susceptible to the side-effects of metamizole.

Cristina García del Campo told the Guardian: “This drug has destroyed people’s lives and it should now be withdrawn. One lady took three tablets and she had part of her feet amputated and several fingers.

Even if it doesn’t kill you, once you’ve had sepsis your body is never the same.”

On the market since 1922, the drug was withdrawn in 30 countries worldwide when the risks of agranulocytosis (a condition that creates a very high risk of infection) were detected, but it’s still a very common medication in much of Europe.

British expat Paddy Clancy, 80, now living in the Alicante municipality of Javea, almost died after being prescribed metamizole following shoulder surgery in 2017. He was in a coma for 39 days and lost 22 kilos in weight.

According to local translator García del Campo, there have been several incidences where Irish and English patients have actually lost their lives as a result of taking the medication.

The current legal action against the Spanish Ministry of Health aims to prevent the medical authorities from prescribing metamizole to patients from countries where the drug is banned. ADAF is also requesting that Spain commission a more thorough analysis of the risk factors associated with the medication.

In other news: Dry in the south and stormy in the north—Spain weather forecast Nov 27-30

Image: Freepik

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