Par Health issued a voluntary recall of two lots of the IV barbiturate Brevital sodium that may be tainted with cellulose.
The recall, which was posted on the U.S. FDA's website and dated Oct. 8, comes less than three weeks after the St. Louis-area manufacturer issued a recall for a pair of lots of the IV sedative dexmedetomidine HCl in 0.9% sodium chloride injection due to possible contamination with cellulose or stopper material.
The recall is part of string of actions from several companies this past year that have struggled with particulate contamination of drug solutions typically used in hospitals for infusions.
Par’s latest recall, which extends to the hospital level, covers two lots of Brevital sodium 500 mg/vial CIV identified as 86930 with an expiration of February 2028 and 88623 with an expiration of April 2028. The drug is also known by the generic name methohexital.
The product was distributed nationwide to wholesalers between July 2025 and May 2026. Wholesalers, distributors and hospital pharmacies with the suspect drug should immediately discontinue use of the recalled lots and halt any distribution, according to the recall notice.
As of the date of the announcement, the company said it had not received any reports of adverse events related to the recall.
The product is formulated for intravenous infusion in adult patients or intramuscular induction in pediatric patients as “an ultra-short-acting barbiturate anesthetic,” primarily used to induce anesthesia and procedural sedation, Par Health said.
It warned that if used, the recalled lots have the potential of causing life-threatening effects such as pulmonary emboli (blockage in pulmonary blood vessels), occlusions of other blood vessels (which can lead to tissue death and possible organ damage), or inflammation of the walls of veins, which may lead to clotting.