Canadians Kept In Dark About Defective Drugs

North American patients have been put at risk by prescription drugs that Canadian pharmaceutical companies sold with knowledge that their products were defective, a Star investigation has found.

Using records obtained through U.S. freedom of information laws, the Star also found other Canadian companies have:

-- Hidden, altered and in some cases destroyed test data that showed their products were tainted or potentially unsafe.

-- Not reported evidence of side-effects suffered by consumers taking their drugs.