Dimetapp is changing the decongestant in all of its products from pseudoephedrine to phenylephrine. They are doing this because due to a federal law to prevent methamphetamine production, all products containing pseudoephedrine must be sold behind the pharmacy counter. (You probably have noticed this change).
Companies want to be sure their products are visible and readily available, of course, so most are making this change. However, phenylephrine is not as well studied in children for safety or effectiveness.
The company does not appear to be notifying pediatricians directly, as they usually do, but have put advertisements in professional magazines. They fail to mention in their ad that infant decongestant drops have been completely removed, and the new name is toddler decongestant drops. This is again because the medication is not well studied in children and there is no FDA approved dose in children less than two years of age.
There are already problems with using cough and cold medications in infants and toddlers; changing to a less known decongestant will only make these problems worse. However, it is what all the drug companies are likely to eventually do.
