Side Effect From Metoprolol By Ethex

I have been on Metoprolol by Parr for 5 years. I recently moved and had to fill my prescription at CVS.
It was a different shaped pill so I called them. All they said that it was made by Ethex instead of by Parr and that it was the same pill that I was taking.

HOWEVER, after taking 3 pills, I got up in the middle of the night, got out of bed and fainted. I called CVS the following morning and they said that it definitely could be the Ethex manufacturer because it has different fillers than the one made by Parr. My blood pressure was 90 over 60. I then went onto the Internet and saw that some of the pharmacies have taken Ethex drugs off their shelves. They weren't removed by the FDA. Metoprolol was one of the drugs. Why in heavens name didn't anyone contact the FDA to tell them that the Ethex brand has side effects? What would have happened if I were driving? A pharmaceutical rep told me that when there are different fillers in a drug, it could mean that the drug could have more potency. In other words, it could be 30% stronger that the pill I was taking, hence my fainting and my very low blood pressure. I hit my dresser and the wall, aside from my floor, and I am black and blue all over.

Is there anyone out there that is going to do something?????

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I am very sorry to hear about your experience. The real problem here is that generic drugs are allowed, under federal law, to differ from their name brand counterparts by as much as plus or minus 20% in the active ingredient and the fillers do not have to be the same at all. For some people, this doesn't seem to cause a problem, but for people who are particularly sensitive, their bodies can respond badly to getting either too much or too little of the drug. It really has nothing to do with the fillers, they are inactive and will not affect the potency of the medication, it has to do with the active ingredient, in this case, you probably got pills that had too much of it in them.

Unfortunately, since this is allowed under law, there is nothing that can be done, even if you complain to the FDA. They consider a difference of 20% to not make a therapeutic difference and they will not do anything.

If you search these boards, you will see other instances where people have had a problem with various generic medications and the FDA says the differences fall in this window, so the medications are safe.

Is there anyone else out there who has experience with this particular one?

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