So far 99 children die in Indonesia from kidney disorders linked to cough syrups
The World Health Organisation recently issued an alert warning against four syrups made in India causing similar problems. The first cases were reported in July. According to some experts, deaths could rise in the coming days despite a ban on sales.
Jakarta (AsiaNews) – Indonesia’s Ministry of Health has confirmed 206 cases of children suffering from kidney disorders after taking a cough syrup containing ethylene glycol (EG) and diethylene glycol (DEG) with 99 deaths reported so far.
Earlier this month, the World Health Organisation (WHO) issued an alert warning against four syrups made in India after scores of children suffered kidney problems from the same toxic elements with more than 60 deaths.
Dr Siti Nadia Tarmizi, a spokeswoman for the ministry, said the cough syrups were now banned in Indonesia. It is unclear whether the medicine responsible for the deaths was imported or produced locally.
Indonesian epidemiologist Dicky Budiman from Griffith University in Australia said that the 206 reported cases were "the tip of the iceberg" and that "the number of deaths is expected to rise”.
He also noted that haemodialysis treatment is not common in Indonesia, even in the country's largest cities.
In Jakarta, 65 per cent of children who had kidney disorders died despite being treated in the capital's best hospital.
Former WHO Director for Southeast Asia, Tjandra Yoga Aditama, also expressed concern, urging Indonesian health authorities to investigate the cases so that “we exactly know the real cause of death among our children.”
West Sumatra health chief Dr Lila Yanwar said that at least 21 children from different parts of the province were treated in hospitals in Padang and the Mentawai Islands.
In Yogyakarta, on the island of Java, a mother complained about the delay with which Indonesian health authorities addressed the problem, given that the first cases had emerged in July with early reports coming out of The Gambia about syrups made in India.
"I gave the syrup to my son some days ago and I have no idea what will happen to him," she said, adding that in Yogyakarta alone at least 13 cases were reported with six deaths.
Dr Pembajun Setyaningastutie, head of the Yogyakarta health agency, explained that difficulty in passing urine is the first symptom three to five after taking the syrup.
"But we have to be sure about the real cause of kidney disorders,” he warned.
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