TGA expected to make long-acting paracetamol S4 after pharmacies fail to stop harms
The review suggests almost 1400 children aged 10-14 are deliberately self-harming with paracetamol each year
Modified-release paracetamol could become a prescription-only S4 drug in response to surging suicide attempts and self-harm, with the TGA to decide on the potential move later this year.
A TGA-commissioned review of intentional overdose with paracetamol suggested the upscheduling on Wednesday, after identifying 3575 cases reported to the NSW Poisons Information Centre last year.Â
This compared with around 2334 cases of intentional overdoses reported to the centre in 2019.
Only one in 10 overdose cases involved modified-release (MR) paracetamol, which is not approved at all in the EU or the UK.
