European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 17, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                How old Are those drugs in your Medicine Cabinet Medicine does not improve with age though Many states do not require expiration dates for prescription drug labels Consumers should be aware of the possibility of deterioration of several types loss of Potency old or improperly stored 1111111 drugs May deliver a weaker dose than was prescribed. Am chemical changes age Light heat air or water May make a drug break Down into useless or harmful substances. Evaporation a drug May become much stronger per dose if it loses a percentage of its alcohol or water. Contamination microbes May Breed in a drug water May make it cake or destroy its protective coating. Not by Jane e. Brody the new York times imagine these possibilities a woman with an underactive thyroid gland decided to use up an old Supply of the thyroid medication that had been keeping her disorder under control Lor years. At her next medical visit she was found to be thyroid deficient and her doctor increased her dosage unwittingly producing an overdose. Neither she nor her physician realized her apparent deficiency arose because the old medication she had been taking had lost its Potency. A teen Ager being treated for acne with Small daily doses of tetracycline developed signs of kidney damage he underwent an extensive workup for kidney disease without doctors realizing that the problem had been caused by a Supply of tetracycline that had been Kepi in the car and had changed its chemical nature to form substances toxic to the kidneys. A child Given cough Medicine containing codeine left Over from a previous illness became disoriented. Some of the water in the Medicine had evaporated leaving a much More concentrated and potent drug behind. A Man suffering a second attack of conjunctivitis got worse after he used medicated Eye drops left Over from his previous bout now his eyes Weie infected with two instead of just one microorganism because the drops had become contaminated during or since his first illness. Although unusual these cases Are hardly far fetched said or Jeffrey l Brown a paediatrician in Rye Brook n who has examined various consumer problems related to the use of old outdated or improperly stored prescription drugs cons tiers Are now being told More about How Long to keep Dairy products juices and dry cereals than about prescription drugs that can sharply influence their health Only seven states a Georgia Hawaii Maryland Massachusetts Nevada Oregon and Washington now require pharmacists to put expiration dates on prescription labels in the remaining 43 states most Consumers gel Only the Date their prescriptions were filled. Military pharmacies also do not put expiration dates on prescriptions Bill Cook a spokesman for the army s health services come at fort Sam Houston Texas said the time and Cost required to Quot Check and double Check Quot drugs a some of which May come from different manufacturers lots to make up a single prescription a would be too inefficient and an official with the Navy Bureau of Medicine said that trying to pinpoint expiration dates would Only increase the waiting time for prescriptions to be filled which some people feel is too Long already but the officials pointed out the Lack of expiration dates should not be a problem. Readers action line Munich housing to be returned it a according to the Slars and stupor cafes Europe will be moving out of Munich As the announced closure of Mcgraw Cavern progresses with this ultimate closure Wil any of the apartments at Mcgraw or at the Terlacher Forst housing area be sold to americans or will they simply be Quot gifted Quot to the German government . Reichenbach Bern Switzerland col. Richard a. Manupella commander Munich military Community replies upon the closure of Usma Munich All cd gently controlled  property encompassing the military Quot most prescription drugs the military dispenses have a shelf life of 18 to 36 months Quot the naw official said. Quot drugs Given on prescriptions that last say seven 14 or 21 Days Are meant to be taken until they Are used up. People should t have old prescriptions lying around the  Cook agreed saying Quot a prescription with a 14-Day Supply of pills is Means to be taken for 14  while some pharmacists May voluntarily provide expiration dates on medication labels most do not because it is not required by Law though the american pharmaceutical association recommends such Labelling. Depending upon the drug and the age of the pharmacists Stock a prescription Medicine May remain Good for years or Only for a few months but patients rarely have any Way to know when it is no longer Safe or advisable to use it in addition few patients Are told How to store medicines so Thal they retain their Potency and do not break Down faster than usual to form potentially hazardous byproducts or lose the coating that controls How fast and where the drug is absorbed. Most people keep medicines in a bathroom Cabinet where heat and moisture can hasten deterioration. In a Survey of 124 retail pharmacists in the Rye Brook Vicinity Brown found that Consumers were Likely to be Given a very wide Range of Quot guesses Quot when they asked the pharmacist whether it was advisable to continue using an old prescription. In fewer than one Quarter of the test inquiries did the pharmacist bother to Check the Stock used in filling the prescription before telling the caller when the drug would be Likely to expire and in virtually no instance did the pharmacist ask the inquiring consumer How the drug was stored before estimating its life expectancy. Thus in the Survey Brown conducted with Nicholas p Brown a student at the University of Pennsylvania pharmacists gave answers ranging from three months to 60 months after they were asked when to Stop using tablets of the prescription drug prop Ranolo ineral that were said to have been bought six months earlier nearly a third of the pharmacists recommended discarding the drug a year after Purchase and 27 percent said not to use the Medicine after two years from the Day it was bought Community to include housing will be returned through the Usa eur real estate office to the Federal German government. The Federal German government will negotiate and pay the . Government a residual value Price for All returned property. To write us headers action line is the readers Quot court of last resort Quot striving to answer some of the questions about life overseas in a military environment or questions about policies and guidelines when other avenues for answers Are not readily available. If you have a question and Don t know where to turn for the answer write to headers action line co the stars and stripes Apoate 09211. All letters must be signed and preference will be Given to those seeking information of general interest to our readers but Only 19 percent of those who said the drug would be Good for a year or More made any Effort to verify an expiration Date before answering the consumer s question. The findings of the study Are published in the current Issue of the journal of the american Board of family practice. The omission of expiration dates on prescription drug labels contrasts sharply with their inclusion on the packages of Over the counter remedies ranging from aspirin and cough medicines to Lens cleaners and skin lotions. You can also Tell when aspirin has deteriorated because it smells like vinegar to Brown this difference in Labelling is a potential source of consumer confusion. A Consumers have come to expect expiration dates and when they done to find any on prescription drugs they May assume incorrectly that the drugs Are Good indefinitely Quot he said in an interview. He said doctors could help by specifying on prescription forms Quot Label expiration Date Quot patients can request such Labelling on their own when they turn in prescriptions. Consumers also have a right to refuse a filled prescription if they learn that the expiration Date is sooner than when the medication is Likely to be used up. The Issue of expiration dates has become increasingly important with changes in pharmaceutical practices encouraged by stateside health insurance plans people with chronic ailments like High blood pressure diabetes or arthritis now often buy three month supplies at one time. Those who pay out of pocket for expensive drugs May be unwilling to discard leftover medication. Or without a specific expiration Date patients May be told to discard the leftover medication sooner than necessary. For convenience certain drugs that Are needed from time to time May be kept on hand for months or years. Many people keep stashes of regularly needed drugs in the car office and vacation Home and some of those supplies May expire without the consumer s realizing it. Brown said that without expiration dates on each Supply Consumers might be tempted to mix the various prescriptions and end up with erratic doses. This is indeed what happened to a Man with High blood pressure who decided to use up an old prescription for prop Ranolo kept in the Glove compartment of his car his blood pressure Rose because the old and improperly stored drug was not As potent As it should have been. When a patient s condition or response to therapy changes unexpectedly Brown suggested that before a stronger dose or new drug is prescribed the patient and doctor discuss drug taking practices that could have led to the inadvertent use of an expired denatured or contaminated drug contributing to this report staff writer Chuck Emch in Washington Page 16 a the stars and stripes tuesday december 17, 1991