Recall of Tylenol, Motrin, Zyrtec and Benadryl for kids causing confusion for parents

Parents and retailers have spent the last few days pulling bottles of children's Tylenol, Motrin, Zyrtec and Benadryl from their medicine chests and store shelves after the manufacturer and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration sent out a late Friday evening alert of a new recall.

McNeil Consumer Healthcare has recalled its infant and children's liquid medicine after consumer complaints revealed manufacturing problems affecting quality, purity and potency. More than 40 varieties, with differing sizes and flavors, of the popular over-the-counter drugs have been recalled, and parents are being warned not to administer any to their children.

Caroline Almeida, a spokeswoman for McNeil, told Consumer Ally there haven't been any adverse medical events associated with the recalled products. She said she didn't have details on what exactly was in the consumer complaints that led to the discovery of the manufacturing errors.

The mistakes ranged from providing a higher dose of the active ingredient to purity questions about inactive ingredients to the presence of solid particles in the liquid. The company didn't say how much extra medicine was involved, but did call the risk of serious medical events "remote." The particles included solidified product ingredients and "manufacturing residue," which Almeida identified as "tiny metal specks."

The question of how so many products could become fouled up in the same way is currently unknown, according to Almeida, who said a comprehensive quality assessment is under way. The recalled drugs, which were manufactured in the United States, were sold in the U.S., Canada, Dominican Republic, United Arab Emirates, Fiji, Guam, Guatemala, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Panama, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, and Kuwait.