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Edited By: Revathi Hariharan
Last Updated: March 04, 2023, 07:35 IST
Union Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar had said that after testing, the samples of the cough syrups have been declared to be of standard quality.(Representational Photo)
According to the CDC, they were contacted by Gambia’s Ministry of Health (MoH) in August last year to assist in characterizing the illness (multiple cases of Acute Kidney Injury and deaths in children)
There is a strong link between the death of several children in Gambia and cough syrups made in India that are allegedly contaminated, according to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States and the Gambian health authorities.
In October last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) had issued an alert stating that the four cough syrups supplied by India-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd to Gambia were of substandard quality and alleged that they were linked to the death of many children in Gambia.
A CDC released a report on Friday stating that, “This investigation strongly suggests that medications contaminated with Diethylene Glycol [DEG] or Ethylene Glycol [EG] imported into the Gambia led to this Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) cluster among children.”
CDC Examines Symptoms, Causes
The report also said, “Patients with DEG poisoning can experience a range of signs and symptoms, including altered mental status, headache, and gastrointestinal symptoms; however, the most consistent manifestation is AKI, characterized by oliguria (low urine output) or anuria, progressing over 1-3 days to renal failure (indicated by elevated serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen).”
According to the CDC, they were contacted by Gambia’s Ministry of Health (MoH) in August last year to assist in characterizing the illness (multiple cases of Acute Kidney Injury and deaths in children), describing the epidemiology, and identifying potential causal factors and their sources.
The report also said that in past DEG outbreaks, manufacturers have been suspected of substituting DEG in place of more expensive, pharmaceutical-grade solvents.
“Low-resource countries might not have the human and financial resources to monitor and test imported drugs,” it stated.
India Dismisses Claims
Union Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar in a reply to the Lok Sabha on February 3 had said that after testing, the samples of the cough syrups have been declared to be of standard quality.
The samples were found to be negative for both Diethylene Glycol (DEG) and Ethylene Glycol (EG), Pawar had said in a written reply to a question.
Uzbekistan Cough Syrup Death Case
Meanwhile, three employees from Noida-based pharmaceutical firm Marion Biotech, whose cough syrup is alleged to have led to the death of 18 children in Uzbekistan last year, were arrested on charges of manufacturing and selling adulterated drugs, officials said.
Drugs Inspector from Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), North Zone, on Friday issued a notice to Marion Biotech asking it to stop the sale and distribution of the drug concerned, stating that the sample was found to be “not of standard quality”.
The arrests of three employees were made after an FIR was lodged late Thursday night against five officials of Marion Biotech, including two of its directors. This was over a complaint by a CDSCO drug inspector, the officials said.
Police are searching for the company’s directors at large to apprehend them.
The complainant drug inspector stated that 22 Marion Biotech products were found to be of low quality (adulterated and spurious).
(With PTI Inputs)
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