WHO issues warning on 4 cold and cough syrups linked to maiden pharmaceuticals after 66 children death in Gambia

The World Health Organization (WHO) has immediately condemned the deaths of 66 children in Gambia as a result of cough and cold syrups manufactured in India. The WHO issued a warning on Wednesday against 4 cold and cough syrups made and sold by India's Maiden Pharmaceuticals. It alerted that they could be linked to the deaths of 66 kids in The Gambia.

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"Laboratory examination of samples of each of the four products revealed the presence of dangerous levels of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol," the WHO cautions. It was stated that they were found in products in The Gambia and may have been distributed to other regions of the world as well.

WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced today that the organisation has issued a medical product alert regarding four contaminated medicines discovered in The Gambia, which have been linked to severe kidney injuries and the deaths of 66 children. The WHO stated that it is conducting additional investigations on Medyne Pharma's products in collaboration with the company and regulatory authorities. When contacted by Reuters, Maiden Farm, however, refused to respond instantly. 

The four products are Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup, and Magrip N Cold Syrup, according to the WHO alert.

"To date, the stated manufacturer has not provided WHO with guarantees on the safety and quality of these products," according to the alert, adding that laboratory analysis of product samples "confirms that they contain unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol as contaminants."

It added that the toxic effect "can include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, inability to pass urine, headache, altered mental state, and acute kidney injury which may lead to death." 

After the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that four cough syrups manufactured by a Haryana-based pharmaceutical firm could be linked to the deaths of 66 children in The Gambia, the government launched an investigation.

According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare sources, the WHO notified the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on September 29 about the cough syrups. According to the sources, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization immediately took up the matter with the Haryana regulatory authority and launched a thorough investigation.