FDA issues warning regarding EDTA drug mixups

WASHINGTON The Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning for mixups and deaths involving two drugs with similar names.

The drugs, both referred to as EDTA, are edetate disodium, which is approved to treat patients with high levels of calcium in the blood and edetate calcium disodium, used to treat lead poisoning.

The agency said it has received almost a dozen reports of deaths among children and adults in the past 30 years, including more recent reports of children being treated for lead poisoning who were accidentally given the wrong disodium drug.

The FDA said it is currently considering whether it will allow edetate disodium to be sold in the U.S.