Prescription Drug Error Causing Eye Injury

The Botkin Case

Mr. Botkin experienced a pink eye, a common eye ailment. He called up his ophthalmologist who prescribed the prescription drug Ciloxin. Ciloxin is a standard prescription for pink eye. The prescription was called into the defendant pharmacy and the defendant pharmacist misinterpreted the drug as Xalantan, a totally different, heavy, prescription drug used to treat glaucoma.

Further, because the original prescription for Ciloxin is for a weak drug, Mr. Botkin was told to use the prescription every two hours. However, when prescribed the drug Xalantan, a stronger drug, it is only to be used one time per day.

Since the defendant pharmacist confused the prescription and did not change the prescribed time of the dosage, Mr. Botkin, as instructed, used the drug that he was prescribed every two hours. Because the defendant pharmacist incorrectly prescribed the medicine, Mr. Botkin received several hundred times the dosage of Xalantan than humans are to be prescribed. After several doses, Mr. Botkin’s eyes became painful, sensitive to light and finally began to show small signs of bleeding.

He immediately stopped taking the prescription and reported to the hospital where the discrepancy in the prescriptions was discovered. As a result of this incorrect drug prescription and the damage to the eye, Mr. Botkin was left with eye troubles and eye sensitivities.

The defendants acknowledged the prescription error, but denied the extent of the damages and after the initial proceedings the case was settled in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.