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Types of Errors

Dangerous and Defective Drugs If you put your trust in a pharmaceutical company and were hurt by their product, you deserve compensation for your suffering.
Wrong Medication Did you receive the wrong medication or incorrect prescription from a pharmacy? If you have suffered because of a medication error please call us for a free case review.
Wrong Dosage Common forms of medication error: incorrect dosage error. Order our free book to learn how to protect yourself and your family from wrong dosage errors.
Other Errors Order our free book, "How to Make Pharmacies Pay for your Injuries Caused by Medication Errors, to learn your rights in prescription error cases.
Kids Rx Errors Order a free copy of The Top 10 Tips to Protect Your Children Against Pharmacy Errors. If you have suffered a prescription error contact our firm today.
Pharmacy Malpractice If you have suffered an injury because a pharmacy dispensed the wrong medication or made an error with your prescription, you are able to file a claim for negligence or malpractice and receive the compensation you deserve.
Walgreens Pharmacy Error Claims There have been numerous claims brought against Walgreens for pharmacy errors or prescription errors. Order our free book to learn how to take action.
CVS Pharmacy Error Claims If you've been injured because of a CVS Pharmacy prescription error, call us for help with your lawsuit at 888-526-7616.
State Pharmacy Boards If you have been severely injured because of a medication error, contact board-certified attorneys immediately to investigate your case free of charge.
Drug & Pharmacy Error Prevention Filing a pharmacy error lawsuit is the only way to make pharmacies take accountability for mistakes. Call our board certified attorneys for a free case review.
State Pharmacy Laws State laws on pharmacy malpractice. Learn the pharmacy error Statute of Limitation laws that apply to your state. Call 877-342-2020 for a free consultation.

What Can Happen When Medication Dosages Are Too Low or Too High?

David W. Hodges
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Partner at Kennedy Hodges LLP practicing pharmacy error, medical malpractice and personal injury law

Prescription drugs are invaluable in treating illnesses and diseases when the right drug is prescribed, with the right dose, and for the right person. Unfortunately, medication mistakes have resulted in injury and death time and time again. How can medication prescribed correctly—the right drug and the right dosage—turn into the wrong dosage of medication and cause health complications?

The wrong dose of medication can get into the hands of an unassuming patient very easily due to:

  • Rushed work at pharmacies
  • Pharmacists misinterpreting a doctor’s prescription
  • Pharmacists failing to supervise technicians or check their work
  • Lack of organization and poor procedures at pharmacies

When an incorrect dose of medicine reaches a patient, serious medical complications can occur due to a patient consuming too little or too much of the drug.

Side Effects of Receiving Too Low of a Medication Dosage

Taking a drug with too little of the active ingredient could cause health complications that range from mildly uncomfortable to severe. For example, a thyroid-inhibiting medication isn’t suppressing a patient’s thyroid hormone enough and the patient experiences shortness of breath or heart palpitations. Too low of a dose of a drug can cause needless side effects, such as not treating the illness or disease properly. On the other hand, receiving too high of a medication dose can be fatal.

Side Effects of Receiving Too High of a Medication Dosage

When a patient takes too much of a drug unknowingly, he or she may suffer from an allergic reaction, kidney failure, organ damage, heart failure, stroke, infection and even death. Sadly, pharmacy errors in which prescriptions are filled with too much of the intended drug dose can cause a patient to overdose.

This is exactly what happened to a Utah teenager when he started taking his prescription for oxycodone hydrochloride, which was intended to relieve his pain from strep throat. The prescription the doctor wrote was for five milligrams (one teaspoon in a cup every four hours), and it appeared that the right dose of the drug was filled because the label clearly indicated the correct information. However, the 18-year-old teenager was unknowingly taking 20 times the dose he was supposed to take because the medication was undiluted.

This pharmacy error resulted in the teen taking 100 milligrams instead of five milligrams. Because the pharmacy gave him liquid concentrate instead of diluting the medication first, he was taking a lethal dose of medicine. This caused him to fall into a deep coma and suffer brain damage and paralysis.

If you suffered from the wrong dose of medication, no matter if you suffered minor or life-threatening injuries, you need to make sure you hold the negligent pharmacy accountable. Call Kennedy Hodges, L.L.P. to speak with an experienced pharmacy malpractice lawyer. Call 888-526-7616 for a free consultation and a FREE copy of our report, How to Make Pharmacies Pay for Injuries Caused by Medication Errors.

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