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More than 2,500 barbiturates have been synthesized. At the height of their popularity, about 50 were marketed for human use.
For pediatric patients, intravenous fluids are the most commonly cited products involved in medication errors that are reported to the USP.
This year, an estimated 1.4 million Americans will have a new or recurrent heart attack.
Critical care patients are twice as likely to receive the wrong medication. Of these errors, 20% are life-threatening, and 42% require additional life-sustaining treatments.
Though methadone is often used to treat dependency on other opioids, the drug itself can be abused. Crushing or snorting methadone can achieve the opiate "rush" desired by addicts. Improper use such as these can lead to a dangerous dependency on methadone. This drug now accounts for nearly one-third of opioid-related deaths.