Shenzhen, China (eCanadaNow) - The factories that produce Heparin in the South China area are under intense focus as the United States struggles to ensure that the Heparin supply is safe. Workers clad in protective blue suits and surgical masks work to produce the drug, which is widely used world wide for blood thinning.
The company that has been the main supplier in the United States, Baxter International has issued a voluntary recall for their Heparin products. Their products have been linked to a number of injuries and some deaths in the United States and overseas. Large Dose heparin, such as is administered during kidney dialysis and heart surgery have been recalled by Baxter.
APP Pharmaceuticals, Inc, has tried to take up the slack left by the Baxter recall. The factory in China operated by APP has been inspected at least nine times in the last several years, but with the Baxter recall attention is on all Heparin production in China.
Heparin is produced from pig intestines, and it was discovered that there was a counterfeit chemical in the material that was recalled. It is not known where the counterfeit chemical came from, but it was one that closely mimics some of the function of Heparin.
