Description:

Several cough syrups made by an Indian pharmaceutical company have been linked to acute kidney injury and the death of 66 children in The Gambia.

In this regard, the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued an alert, warning that more than four cough and cold syrups manufactured by Maiden Pharmaceuticals in India have been linked to kidney damage and death in children.

The four drugs include Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Children"s Cough Syrup, Makoff Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup, as mentioned in the WHO warning.

The WHO also noted that global exposure to the contaminated drugs is expected as they may have been supplied outside of The Gambia.

ALSO READ : Deconstruction of How Indian Despise Mongering Tweets Led to UK Riots

In addition, WHO Director-General (DG) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the incident as more than heartbreaking for the families of the children, adding that further investigations are underway in collaboration with the company and relevant Indian authorities.

According to details, Gambian authorities seized the said drugs from rural areas in the West Coast and Upper River regions. Meanwhile, Gambia"s Ministry of Health has indicated that E.coli bacteria are a potential cause of acute kidney injury.

However, the head of the Department of Health investigation, Abubacarr Jagne, agreed that the kidney damage was likely caused by paracetamol and promethazine syrup. On September 23, health authorities issued a recall of all drugs that contained these substances.

Note that the Gambia recently experienced severe flooding that resulted in a series of kidney diseases and diarrheal diseases with high mortality in children, forcing people to consume the medicines in question.

Maiden Pharmaceuticals also made no guarantees to the WHO regarding their safety and quality. In addition, laboratory analysis of the drugs revealed excessive amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol as contaminants.

ALSO READ : Saudi Company Needs to Purchase Shares in the Organic Meat Company

In this context, the warning warned that the above substances are highly harmful to human health and can cause death in some cases.

It is pertinent to mention that Maiden Pharma declined to comment when contacted by Reuters while India"s Drug Controller General (DCG) did not respond to calls or messages. India"s health ministry also did not respond to a request for comment.

Data from the WHO, India"s Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) showed that the company only exported the drugs to The Gambia and warned that their informal or unregulated market supply to other areas in Africa cannot be overlooked.

Similarly, the same contaminants may be added to other exported products, and therefore global exposure is possible.