St. Louis Business Journal -- Cardinal Health Inc., the parent company of St. Louis-based pharmacy franchisor Medicine Shoppe International Inc., is recalling an alcohol-free mouthwash it marketed to hospitals and medical centers after the product tested positive for an infection-causing bacteria. The Dublin, Ohio-based company said the recall applies to 60,000 bottles of mouthwash made by Hydrox Inc. and labeled with Cardinal’s brand name. While not sold in retail stores, it was distributed in individual bottles and in Cardinal’s Presource kits for hospitals, medical centers and long-term care facilities.
Cardinal said the mouthwash was tested and found positive for Burkholderia cepacia, a bacteria that poses little risk to healthy people but can lead to respiratory infections, particularly for those with weakened immune systems or chronic lung diseases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed the mouthwash has been associated with hospital illnesses in a state Cardinal didn’t disclose.
Cardinal said the mouthwash with a reorder number of AG-210 and lot code of 26228 stamped on the bottom left side of the label is affected. Facilities with individual bottles can call 800-964-5227 while those with the product in Presource kits can call 800-766-0706.
Spokesman Troy Kirkpatrick said the mouthwash represents about $1 million in annual sales for the company, which reported $1.9 billion in profit on $86.9 billion in revenue its last fiscal year. The lot of mouthwash bottles affected represents a fraction of sales volume, he said.
No preliminary cost of the recall has been calculated, but Kirkpatrick described any effect on the company as “certainly not material.”
