Uzbekistan links death of 18 kids to cough syrup made in Noida

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 28

Uzbekistan is probing the death of 18 children with the health ministry of the country allegedly linking the mortality to excessive doses of cough syrup Doc-1 Max, manufactured by Marion Biotech, a Noida-based pharmaceutical company.

The Uzbekistan ministry, in a statement, said the deceased children consumed large amounts of the cough syrup and alleged that the drug contained unacceptable levels of ethylene glycol, a toxic contaminant.

Uzbekistan said tablets and syrups of Doc-1 Max had been withdrawn from sales across pharmacies in the country. These claims come close on the heels of a Gambian parliamentary committee blaming Sonepat-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited for exporting contaminated cough syrups, allegedly linked to the death of at least 70 children in the country.

The Indian drug regulator has maintained that no contaminants were found in the control samples of the drugs in question which were taken from Maiden Pharma premises before the firm was closed down for violating manufacturing practices.

The Health Ministry in India did not immediately respond to the claims made by the Uzbekistan health ministry.

The latter said 18 of 21 children suffering from acute respiratory disorder took very high doses of Doc 1 Max syrup, which contains paracetamol.

“Since the syrup contained paracetamol, parents mistook it for an anti-cold drug and administered it to children three to four times a day for two to seven days, exceeding the standard dose for children” and causing at least 18 deaths.

The cough syrup was administered without prescription, the Uzbekistan health authorities said. They also said preliminary lab investigation showed that the drugs in question had high levels of ethylene glycol.