But any side effect could be a problem for Zetia, which lists safety as one of its major selling points.

FORBES: Zetia's Delicate Balance

Bank chiefs said the fault happened as a side-effect of attempts to fix another problem.

BBC: Halifax suspends net dealing

Trained staff are supposed to interpret these short messages and sort each type of side-effect into coded groups - so that the scale of the problem, if any, can be assessed.

BBC: NEWS | Health | Drug alert scheme 'deeply flawed'

The withdrawal "is consistent with our expectations that if there was a cardiovascular problem, the more potent the drug, the more likely the side effect, " says Leonard Yaffe, an analyst at Banc of America Securities.

FORBES: Magazine Article

Some may seek to minimize the significance of this problem by arguing that corresponding cuts on the U.S. side will also not have gone into effect.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center for Security Policy | Time For A ��Sanity Check��: Do Hasty US Concessions To Gorbachev Make Sense?