drug that led to the deaths of three people in the Pacific Northwest. Subsequent testing by the F.D.A. found that some vials were superpotent, containing 640 percent of the drug listed on the label, while others were subpotent. K V Pharmaceuticals, a drug company in St. Louis, did not rely on the government to assess the quality of compounded drugs that competed with its F.D.A.-approved product, Makena, used to reduce the risk of premature birth. K V hired a corporate intelligence firm to obtain and test samples of the compounded version, 17P, for potency and purity. In January, the company's researchers published their findings, alleging that 80 percent of the drug did not meet purity specifications. Michael J. Jozwiakowski, a co-author of the study, said the only companies they could find that manufactured the active pharmaceutical ingredient, available to compounders, were Chinese companies not registered with the F.D.A. One sample contained nothing but glucose. When the F.D.A. was given the data last fall, the agency decided to take its own samples of the compounded version, prompting the International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists, the trade organization, to offer its members advice on how to respond to F.D.A. requests, in an e-mailed member alert titled, "F.D.A. Calling Compounders about 17-P." The trade group spokesman, David Miller, said the alert, despite its title, was intended to defend against data collectors from K V Pharmaceuticals, who member pharmacies said had been calling them asking for samples. "There was no evidence that any of the