Teva Pharmaceuticals recalled 580,844 bottles of prazosin hydrochloride capsules in October after Teva’s analysis found N-nitroso Prazosin impurity C above FDA safety thresholds. The contamination with a chemical linked to cancer prompted a nationwide withdrawal of the blood pressure medication widely prescribed to combat veterans for PTSD nightmares.
The FDA classified the recall as Class II, indicating the contaminated product may cause temporary health problems though serious complications remain unlikely. Approximately 510,000 Americans receive prazosin prescriptions each year, including substantial numbers of veterans whose VA doctors prescribe it for trauma related sleep disturbances.
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Check If Your Medication Is Affected
Only Teva manufactured prazosin is contaminated. Look at your prescription label for “MFG Teva” or “MFR Teva”. The National Drug Code provides confirmation. Teva’s NDC codes begin with 0093. Prazosin from other manufacturers remains unaffected.
Recalled Lot Numbers by Strength
1mg capsules (181,659 bottles recalled):
NDC 0093-4067-01, 100 count bottles: 3010544A, 3010545A (October 2025) | 3010567A (December 2025) | 3010590A (February 2026) | 3010601A, 3010602A, 3010603A (March 2026) | 3010652A, 3010670A, 3010671A (July 2026) | 3010678A, 3010700A, 3010701A (August 2026)
NDC 0093-4067-10, 1000 count bottles: 3010440A (December 2025) | 3010672A (July 2026)
2mg capsules (291,512 bottles recalled):
NDC 0093-4068-01, 100 count bottles: 3010343A (October 2025) | 3010352A (November 2025) | 3010398A, 3010399A, 3010400A, 3010401A, 3010353A (December 2025) | 3010439A, 3010388A (January 2026) | 3010468A, 3010469A, 3010461A (February 2026) | 3010526A, 3010527A (March 2026) | 3010547A (April 2026) | 3010591A (July 2026) | 3010629A (September 2026) | 3010653A (January 2027) | 3010654A, 3010679A, 3010702A (February 2027)
NDC 0093-4068-10, 1000 count bottles: 3010610A (September 2026) | 3010402A (February 2028)
5mg capsules (107,673 bottles recalled):
NDC 0093-4069-01, 100 count bottles: 3010403A, 3010385A, 3010404A (February 2026) | 3010405A, 3010510A, 3010528A, 3010354A (March 2026) | 3010592A, 3010605A, 3010611A, 3010612A (August 2026) | 3010655A, 3010703A (February 2027)
NDC 0093-4069-52, 250 count bottles: 3010430A (November 2025) | 3010613A (August 2026)
NDC 0093-4069-05, 500 count bottles: 3010406A (February 2026)
American Health Packaging, a separate distributor, recalled 3,410 units of 5mg capsules under lot numbers 1016996, 1018336, 1021220 (November 2025) and 1022421, 1025017 (August 2026).
Pharmacists have access to the complete FDA recall database and can verify whether your prescription matches these lot numbers.
Why Veterans Depend on This Medication
Prazosin improved PTSD treatment at VA facilities after doctors discovered it reduced nightmares in trauma patients. Combat veterans who spent years experiencing violent, recurring dreams found they could sleep more consistently.
The drug blocks alpha 1 adrenergic receptors in the brain, interrupting overactive adrenaline signals that trigger nightmares in PTSD patients. Prazosin crosses the blood brain barrier, making it useful for sleep disturbances in trauma survivors. Standard doses range from 1mg to 20mg daily, typically divided between morning and evening administrations.
Originally approved in the 1970s for hypertension, prazosin relaxes blood vessels and improves blood flow. VA doctors noticed PTSD patients taking it for high blood pressure stopped having nightmares. This observation led to widespread off label prescribing throughout veterans’ healthcare systems. The medication also treats benign prostatic hyperplasia and Raynaud phenomenon.
Medical Advice on Stopping Medication
Abruptly stopping blood pressure medication can cause dangerous spikes within days. For PTSD patients, withdrawal brings the immediate return of severe nightmares and sleep disruption.
The FDA states patients should not stop taking prescription medications with potential nitrosamine impurities. Short term exposure to elevated nitrosamine levels carries lower risk than untreated hypertension or unmanaged psychiatric symptoms.
Contact your GP surgery or pharmacy to verify whether your medication appears on the recall before making any changes. Many pharmacies stock prazosin from multiple manufacturers and can switch you immediately to an unaffected product.
Understanding the Contamination
Nitrosamines form during pharmaceutical manufacturing when certain chemical reagents interact during production. These compounds exist naturally in processed meats and chlorinated drinking water at levels that cause no health problems. The FDA established acceptable daily intake limits based on lifetime exposure studies showing nitrosamine consumption at or below those thresholds poses no increased cancer risk, even over 70 years of daily medication use.
The recalled prazosin batches exceeded those limits. Teva operates manufacturing facilities worldwide but declined to disclose which plant produced the contaminated capsules. This recall follows a pattern first identified in 2018 when European regulators found contamination in a blood pressure drug manufactured in China. Since then, nitrosamine issues have appeared in diabetes medications, heartburn drugs, antibiotics, and smoking cessation treatments. The FDA revised its manufacturing guidance in September 2024, imposing stricter testing protocols.
Alternative Medications Available
Physicians can prescribe different blood pressure medications if your prazosin batch is recalled and alternative manufacturers are unavailable. Only Teva products are affected by this recall, allowing doctors to switch patients to clonidine, which treats both hypertension and PTSD symptoms though requires careful dose management because sudden discontinuation causes rebound blood pressure increases. Trazodone provides another option for PTSD related sleep disturbances, working through different brain chemistry mechanisms than prazosin.
Multiple companies manufacture generic prazosin. Only Teva’s production is affected by this recall.
Steps to Take Now
Bring your medication bottle to your pharmacy with the prescription number visible. Staff will compare your lot number against the recall list and determine whether your specific batch is affected. If it is, they can substitute prazosin from a different manufacturer or contact your doctor about alternative prescriptions.
Keep your current medication until you secure a replacement. The health risks from untreated high blood pressure or PTSD symptoms exceed the theoretical long term cancer risk from brief exposure to elevated nitrosamine levels.
Report any adverse reactions to the FDA MedWatch programme at 1-800-FDA-1088.
Teva issued return instructions to pharmacies and wholesalers in October. The recall remains active in January 2026 without an announced completion date. The company’s internal health hazard assessment rated overall patient risk as medium. Multiple pharmaceutical companies continue manufacturing prazosin to FDA standards, ensuring supply remains available through alternative sources.
