My friend sent me this news story. I was not even sure why I was looking at it. However, I was drawn to investigate. The article at first appeared to be about children. As I looked deeper, it turns out, it was about infants. Yet, most of the articles pictured older children or adults. That troubled me. Then I thought, well maybe you can’t show pictures of infants. But, I completed an image search and found plenty of pictures related to the aritcle. SO, I switched them out with the ones from the press of older children. Except for the first article. This young boy, already had the syndrome as far as I can tell.
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Spanish health authorities have issued an alert after more than a dozen children developed a rare condition known as “werewolf syndrome,” which is marked by excessive hair growth.
The kids apparently acquired the disorder—which goes by the medical term hypertrichosis—through tainted medication.
After 13 children presented to doctors with abnormal growth of hair, the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products recalled several multiple batches of omeprazole, a drug that treats stomach problems such as acid reflux and ulcers by decreasing the amount of acid the stomach produces. (OK, what are children doing taking medications for acid reflux or ulcers?? Those medications are not good for adults to take. They actually make the problem worse. Your stomach needs acid to digest your food, so if you remove the stomach acid your body works hard to create even more acid than it did before you took the medicine. It becomes a vicious cycle.)
Lab tests showed that the omeprazole was contaminated with minoxidil, a medication to treat male-pattern baldness. Some of the pharmaceutical products that the kids ingested were intended for use in animals by veterinarians. (WHAT?? How did the children end up taking medications meant for animals?)
At least three more cases of youth with hypertrichosis were later reported.
The drug’s manufacturer, Málaga-based FarmaQuímica Sur SL—which also makes cosmetics—had its licence to produce pharmaceutical products temporarily suspended. (their license is only temporarily suspended? For how long?)
The children affected were expected to see a “spontaneous reversal of hypertrichosis” once they stopped taking the contaminated medicine. (keep reading, we will see how this goes)
Acquired hypertrichosis, as in the case of the kids from Spain, can occur from the use of a medication as an intentional outcome or side effect, says Dr. Monica Li, clinical instructor in the department of dermatology and skin science at the University of British Columbia. (WHAT? Have you ever heard of that? Developing that rare genetic disease as a side effect of taking medicine either internally or externally? What??)
“If hypertrichosis occurs as a result of the use of a medication, stopping the medication is important, after consulting a physician,” Li says. “There are medications that are commercially available to stimulate hair growth, such as on the scalp or eyelashes. If these medications are applied inappropriately, or not as directed by a physician, excess hair growth may occur at unintended body sites.” (Gee, you think?)
Other medications have been known to cause acquired hypertrichosis, including anti-convulsants and corticosteroids, according to a 2015 study out of Italy’s University Hospital “Policlinico-Vittorio Emanuele, published in the Italian Journal of Pediatrics. It can also result from malnutrition, anorexia nervosa, endocrine disorders, infectious diseases, and metabolic diseases, among other conditions. (Anybody every heard of that? Or, known of any cases? If there are any, they are caused by modern pharmaceuticals.)
Sometimes, hypertrichosis at a focal body site may be secondary to trauma, friction, or inflammation of the skin, Li notes. Yet another link seen with hypertrichosis involving large areas of the body is malignancy, although this is infrequent.
Congenital hypertrichosis (present at birth) is extremely rare, with only about 50 cases ever documented. (In the 19th century, some people with “werewolf syndrome” were exhibited at circuses and fairs.)
Congenital generalized hypertrichosis is characterized by hair growth on the face, trunk and limbs, causing significant emotional distress and embarrassment.
In most of these cases, hypertrichosis is not an isolated symptom but rather is associated with other clinical signs including intellective delay, epilepsy, or complex body malformations.
“Hypertrichosis can be seen in a number of uncommon to rare inherited conditions and syndromes seen at birth,” Li says. “These inherited conditions and syndromes often have involvement of other important organs, such as the brain and eyes.”
There are different approaches to the treatment of excess hair, including cosmetic procedures like bleaching, trimming, shaving, plucking, or waxing. Intense pulsed light-source, electrolysis, and laser treatments can be effective, while topical pharmacological ointments are sometimes used.
Li says that people should always seek medical advice if they have unusual, excessive hair growth.
“Aside from the often-unwanted appearance of excess hair growth, hypertrichosis can be part of a complex medical matter,” Li says. “It is important to treat the underlying medical context leading to excess hair growth along with the excess hair growth itself.
“If hypertrichosis is part of an inherited condition or syndrome seen at birth, where there may be a negative impact on other organs, physicians from different specialties—for example, neurologists or ophthalmologists—are needed to manage these effects. Prioritize seeking medical attention and physician advice over removal of excess hair growth so that your health needs are cared for adequately and appropriately.”
Hmmm… so ok I read the article. Did not see much of interest. So I looked to see if there were any other related articles.
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The Werewolf Kids Of Spain: Drug Mislabeling Led To Dense Hair Growth On Children’s Bodies
By Just like in the popular animated film Hotel Transylvania, children and babies in Spain started to grow dense layers of hair all over their bodies and faces, seemingly out of nowhere.
“My boy’s forehead, cheeks, arms, legs and hands filled with hair. He had an adult’s eyebrow,” Ángela Selles, the mother of six-month-old baby Uriel, told the Spanish newspaper El Pais. “It was very scary because we didn’t know what was happening,” Selles said. (NOW, tell me, how can a 6 month old have acid reflux so bad they need Prilosec?)
Parents and doctors were baffled by the sudden spike in hypertrichosis cases. It is also known as the werewolf syndrome and is characterized by excessive hair growth anywhere on a person’s body. Could this be a recessive condition passed down the family? Perhaps they had a bearded aunt somewhere among their ancestors they did not know about. Perhaps it was a metabolic disorder.
On Wednesday (Aug. 28), the Spanish Health Ministry finally announced that it had discovered the root of the problem. In a pharmaceutical mix-up, babies across Spain had been inadvertently dosed with medication for alopecia, or to put simply, hair loss.
The common denominator among the afflicted children: They were all taking the same medicated formula that was meant to contain omeprazole, a drug used to treat acid reflux disorders.
Barbara van Beck was an entrepreneur and celebrity who lived with a condition whereby her face and much of her body were covered with hair. She is believed to have had the condition hypertrichosis. Photo: “File:Barbara van Beck.jpg” by Zeromonk is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0″ The drug was first identified in early July as a suspect for the condition and was recalled from stores. An ensuing inquiry by Spain’s Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS) uncovered that rather than omeprazole, the formula the children were ingesting contained minoxidil, the active ingredient in Rogaine which is used to treat male-pattern hair loss.(I have to wonder, how long was it on the shelves? How many parents purchased it? How many children have been affected? I am certain it took a while for the children taken it to show signs, and then for the parents to decide to take them to the doctor, then longer for the doctors to investigate it, and longer for the Health Ministry to figure it out.)
This catastrophe was the result of a mix-up somewhere along the packaging process, where the minoxidil was mislabelled as omeprazole. By Aug. 6, 22 batches of the tainted formula had been recalled. On Tuesday (Aug. 27), the factory where the drug was produced closed down, El Pais reported.
Hypertrichosis is typically linked to an extremely rare genetic condition in which excessive hair growth begins in infancy and persists into adulthood. Only about 50 cases of this kind of hypertrichosis have ever been documented, according to JAMA Dermatology.
Thankfully, these kids will not be growing up into adult werewolves as the excess hair should start falling out within a few months. Nevertheless, it was a trying time for the parents that had to shuttle their kids to specialist clinics, and for older kids who were teased at school for their unusual appearance, The Telegraph reported. Also, at least one child developed liver damage as a result of the mix-up, according to El Pais.
Four families are now preparing to launch a lawsuit against FarmaQuimica Sur, the company behind the mixup.
BABIES DEVELOP ‘WEREWOLF SYNDROME’ AFTER TAKING DRUGS CONTAMINATED WITH HAIR LOSS MEDICINE
More than a dozen babies in Spain have been diagnosed with so-called “werewolf syndrome” after taking contaminated medication, according to officials.
The infants took a preparation of omeprazole, a drug used to treat conditions caused by excess stomach acid like heartburn. The batch was contaminated with minoxidil, a medication for baldness, according to a statement from the Spanish Ministry of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare.
Manuel Fuentes of the Official College of Pharmacists of Granada explained to Granada Hoy the drugs are different to the omeprazole capsules taken by thousands of adults. As children can’t swallow capsules, pharmacists must prepare special omeprazole syrups.
The condition faded after the children stopped taking omeprazole, according to the Spanish Ministry of Health. Parents who have a preparation for babies containing omeprazole should visit their pharmacy to check it is not from a contaminated lot. Anyone who notices excessive hair growth after using the drug should visit a doctor, they said.
On July 11, the Spanish Agency for Medicine and Health Products regulatory body released an alert relating to one batch of omeprazol, official documents show. By August 6, the body had recalled 22 lots.
Before the July recall, the health department was notified of 13 cases of the condition known as hypertrichosis. They later learned of three new cases in the southern Spanish province of Granada, prompting the second recall,El Pais reported citing health officials.
The Spanish pharmaceutical firm Farma-Quimica Sur distributed the 22 batches of the drug, and imported the active ingredient from Indian firm Smilax Laboratories Limited, documents show.Farma-Quimica Sur and Smilax Laboratories Limited did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Newsweek.
Health officials toldGranada Hoy the product was contaminated in Asia. Officials stopped Farma-Química Sur from manufacturing, importing, or distributing drugs in July.
Hypertrichosis is characterized by excessive hair on any part of the body, when compared with those of the same age, sex and race. In rare cases, the condition is inherited rather than caused by a drug as it was in Spain. Only 50 such cases have even been reported.
The only currently available treatment for forms of the condition not related to drugs is removing the hair, including by shaving, waxing or performing laser removal on the area.
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‘Werewolf syndrome’: 17 babies with out-of-control hair growth in drug mixup, reports say
From werewolf syndrome to black hairy tongue, these are just some of the oddest medical conditions. USA TODAY
More than a dozen children in Spain have been diagnosed with “werewolf syndrome” after an error resulted in medicine used to treat alopecia and hair loss being sold as heartburn medicine for children, according to local media reports from El País and Granada Hoy.
The Spanish Agency of Medicines and Medical Devices confirmed the outbreak of hypertrichosis, commonly known as “werewolf syndrome,” to El País Wednesday after 17 cases were reported by parents in three regions in Spain. The disease causes causes excessive hair growth, which some say can make those affected appear like a werewolf.
All the parents of affected children treated their children’s heartburn with over-the-counter omeprazole, which is commonly sold in the United States as Prilosec.
An investigation by the agency found that one manufacturer in Spain, Farma-Química Sur, was to blame for a labeling mix up that resulted in children accidentally ingesting minoxidil — the active ingredient in Rogaine — according to reports from El País and Granada Hoy.
Children who repeatedly took the incorrectly-labeled omeprazole developed hypertrichosis, causing hair to grow rapidly on babies’ forehead, cheeks, arms and legs, according to one mother’s account to El País.
Farma-Química Sur has since been prohibited from manufacturing any medication until this incident has been resolved and all affected omeprazole has been recalled, reported El País.
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20 minutes – Tainted medicine turns babies into werewolves
In southern Spain, a horror syndrome is spreading in babies. After receiving a medicine for heartburn, children have hair on their face. The drug was apparently contaminated with a drug used to treat hair loss, called alopecia.
Already 16 babies from the province of Granada became “werewolves”after receiving a contaminated medicine imported from India. Specifically, children were taking omeprazole, a prescribed remedy for reflux treatment.
Shortly after, the hair became more and more resistant. But not only on the head, but also on the body and especially on the face. They suffered from hypertrichosis, the so-called “werewolf syndrome”. Investigations revealed that the anti-reflux drug was contaminated with minoxidil, a medication used to treat hereditary hair loss.
Tablets removed from the market
Health organizations confirmed the “transformation” the Spanish newspaper El Pais. As a result, hair growth slowly resumed after stopping the tablets.
The drug was withdrawn from the market in Spain. Parents were advised to see a doctor immediately if they gave the contaminated tabletsto their children.
(kle) Source link
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Angela Selles says her son’s cheeks, legs and arms became covered in hair after being given the wrong medication. EL PAIS/Hermin Rodriguez
A drug botch-up in Spain has left babies with “werewolf syndrome”, causing abnormal hair growth on their bodies, and leaving parents confused, upset and “anguished”.
A bizarre spate of “werewolf syndrome” has affected 17 infants in Spain.
The young children caught the rare condition, which causes abnormal hair growth all over the body, because of a mislabelling error by a pharmaceutical company, according to Spanish media. (Ya, cause we trust the media.)
EL PAÍS
✔@el_pais“A mi hijo se le llenó de pelo la frente, los mofletes, los brazos y piernas, las manos… Tenía las cejas de un adulto. Daba mucho miedo porque no sabíamos lo que le estaba pasando” https://elpais.com/sociedad/2019/08/27/actualidad/1566923001_346239.html?ssm=TW_CM …Una empresa farmacéutica de Málaga causa el síndrome del hombre lobo a 17 bebés
Sanidad confirma que la compañía vendió por error un vasodilatador indicado para la alopecia como si fuera omeprazol a granel
elpais.com
The infants were accidentally given a strong vasodilator, a drug normally used to treat alopecia, in place of omeprazole, a medication used to treat heartburn and acid reflux.It’s resulted in several babies experiencing rapid hair growth on their head, arms, chest and back – symptoms closely aligned with what’s known as “werewolf syndrome”, or hypertrichosis.
17 cases have been reported so far across the regions of Andalusia, Cantabria and Valencia.
It’s triggered alarm and panic among affected parents.
One mother told El Pais, “My son’s forehead, cheeks, arms and legs, hands became covered in hair.
“He had the eyebrows of an adult. It was very scary because we didn’t know what was happening to him,” said Ángela Selles, a mum from Granada.
Another mother told the national Spanish newspaper that the experience had caused her anguish.
“We went to the pediatrician and they told us it could be something genetic or to do with his metabolism. We had to start going to specialists to rule out several syndromes and rare conditions,” she said.
El Pais says the outbreak was caused by an internal labeling mix-up at pharmaceutical company Farma-Quimica Sur.
The firm’s factory was closed on Tuesday while the error was probed by authorities.
The company has been forced to halt production until the mislabelled medication had been recalled. (that is it? They have already had two recalls. Why are they not closed until the investigation is complete? or pending fines or restitution? )
Parents have been told that their babies’ abnormal hair growth will cease and begin to fall away as the medication leaves their system.
However the second mother spoken to by El Pais was told by her doctor it could take months for her baby to fully recover.
A medicine imbroglio left several parents in Spain scrambling to figure out why their children were growing hair all over their bodies.
At least 17 children in Spain recently started showing symptoms of “werewolf syndrome” or hypertrichosis, the Spanish health ministry told El País and Agence France-Presse.
“My son’s forehead, cheeks, arms and legs, hands became covered in hair,” Ángela Selles, a mother of a six-month-old boy, told El País.
Another unnamed mother told the Spanish newspaper that she felt “anguish” as she went from doctor to doctor, trying to understand her three-month-old son’s transformation. “We went to the pediatrician and they told us it could be something genetic or to do with his metabolism. We had to start going to specialists to rule out several syndromes and rare conditions,” she told El País.
The Spanish Agency of Medicines and Medical Devices (AEMPS) investigated the alarming outbreak and found that all the children had taken what their caretakers believed was a gastric reflux drug. They traced the medicine back to FarmaQuimica Sur, a pharmaceutical factory based in Malaga, in the south of Spain.
AEMPS told El País that the agency determined that a bulk shipment of the gastric reflux drug came in from India properly labeled, but when it was divided and repackaged, workers used the wrong description materials. What was labeled as the gastric reflex medication, omeprazole, was actually minoxidil, which treats hair loss.
The FarmaQuimica Sur operation was shut down on Tuesday for its failure to meet “control standards on drug production,” AEMPS told El País. The factory was given six months to fix the issues uncovered in the AEMPS investigation, or it will have its pharmaceutical-production authorization revoked.
In a statement regarding the withdrawal of the omeprazole from the market, the Spanish Ministry of Health said it expects the symptoms of hypertrichosis will be reversed following the discontinued use of minoxidil.
Parents who spoke to El País said the body hair has begun to fall off. Minoxidil’s most concerning side effect is heart complications. (So these babies have been exposed to liver damage and heart damage!)
Officials plan to study the outbreak to learn more about the effect of minoxidil on infants.
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I am just going to come right out and say what I am thinking. I know how scientists are when they get it in their claw that there is something they can try… just to see what will happen. Given that they have DNA from families who have this genetic code I am willing to bet that they wanted to test what would happen if those genes were introduced into infants who do not have that predisposition.
I posted this next article because it stated they were drinking tainted formula… however, technically in the article it reads more that they drank a tainted formula. A mixture. Not their food source.
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The children suffered from significant hair growth all over their bodies.
Sixteen children developed a rare condition called hypertrichosis, also known as the werewolf syndrome, after drinking a tainted formula which contained minoxidil – an alopecia remedy, according to El Pais.
Hypertrichosis is a rare condition which causes a person to develop excessive hair growth anywhere on the body, either localizing in certain areas or even affect the whole body including the person’s face.
The formula was meant to treat indigestion and acid reflux with omeprazole as an active substance, however it turned out to be contaminated with the hair growth stimulant which resulted in babies sprouting hair all over their bodies.
“It is necessary to distinguish between the omeprazole capsule, which is taken daily by thousands of people, and that which is used as a basis for a formula. In this case, omeprazole was used because pediatricians cannot give the child a small capsule, so if a child has reflux, they ask a pharmacist to prepare an omeprazole syrup for the child,” said Manuel Fuentes of the Official College of Pharmacists of Granada.
The werewolf syndrome began to fade as soon as the children stopped taking the tainted formula, the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products reports.
On July 11, the agency ordered to pull 23 batches of the affected active substance imported from India to Spain by a pharmaceuticals company Farma-Química Sur SL based in Malaga.
Granda Hoy reports that the tainted omeprazole came from the company’s supplier in India. Farma-Química Sur SL has had its license suspended after the incident, and cannot import, manufacture or distribute drugs.
According to officials, up to 30 pharmacies in Andalusia could have been affected by the contamination with more than 50 batches of the drug involved, Daily Mail reports.
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14 children developed the “werewolf syndrome” by taking contaminated drugs in Spain
Argentina
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SMARTNEWSKeeping you current
Medication Mix-Up Leaves 17 Children Suffering From ‘Werewolf Syndrome’
Thanks to distribution error at Spanish laboratory, anti-baldness medication was sold as acid reflux treatment
By Meilan Solly
SMITHSONIAN.COM
AUGUST 30, 2019