As the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), yesterday, confirmed a suspected substandard cough syrup called “Naturcold,” there were fears that there might be another deadly cough syrup circulating in Nigeria.
Six children under the age of five are said to have died at a health facility in the Fundong health district, in the Northwest region of Cameroon, as a result of the cough syrup, which is alleged to have been produced by Fraken Group.
The Northwest Regional of Cameroun’s delegate for public health claims that the kids’ renal function declined after ingesting the allegedly subpar cough medication.
The product is not authorized for commercialization in Cameroun, according to a statement on NAFDAC’s website, because it was obtained from unreliable sources. The organization stated: “Importers, distributors, retailers, and consumers are encouraged to exercise caution and vigilance along the supply chain to prevent the importation, distribution, sale, and use of the substandard (infected) syrups.
This is true even though the product is not included in NAFDAC’s database. All medical supplies must be purchased from approved and authorized vendors. Carefully examine the items’ physical integrity and genuineness.
As fake drugs are typically smuggled into the nation from neighboring countries and distributed through such inappropriate channels, NAFDAC implores members of the public to refrain from buying medicines from unauthorized sources such as roadside vendors and street hawkers.
Anyone in possession of the aforementioned product is urged to stop using or selling it and to deliver any remaining stock to the local NAFDAC office. It is recommended that you get urgent medical consultation from a licensed healthcare provider if you or someone you know has used these goods or experienced any negative response or occurrence following usage.
The World Health Organization (WHO) also recently issued a warning over Guaifenesin, another cough medicine produced in India. A batch of cough syrup prepared in India that was tainted has been discovered in the Marshall Islands and Micronesia, according to a statement from the WHO.
The Guaifenesin TG syrup, produced by QP Pharmachem Ltd in Punjab, was examined, and it was noted that the tests revealed “unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol.”
Both substances are poisonous to people and may be fatal if consumed. If anyone had become ill, it was not mentioned in the WHO statement. The most recent warning comes months after the WHO connected other Indian-made cough medicines to child fatalities in The Gambia and Uzbekistan.
The medicine, which is intended to treat chest congestion and cough symptoms, was assessed, according to the WHO, by Australia’s drug authority, the Therapeutic Goods Administration. The syrup was sold by Trillium Pharma, a Haryana-based company. Additionally, the WHO issued a warning regarding the distribution of eight tainted and subpar baby syrup products in November of last year.
This alert is similar to the one that NAFDAC issued on October 9, 2022, informing medical professionals and the general public of the 66 children who died in The Gambia as a result of the usage of four subpar cough syrups.
The four goods are Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup, and Magrip N Cold Syrup, according to a statement from NAFDAC.
According to the FDA, laboratory examination of product samples revealed impurities such as diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol at prohibited concentrations.
When taken by humans, diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are fatally poisonous. The active component of My Pikin, the teething remedy that killed so many children in Nigeria, is likewise diethylene glycol.
At least 84 infants in Nigeria perished in 2009 when a poisonous substance was added to a teething remedy. After using a medication named My Pikin Baby Teething Mixture, the kids passed away. A batch of the medication that was put on the market in November 2008, according to health regulators, included diethylene glycol, an industrial solvent that is also an element in antifreeze and braking fluid.
The chemical has the same appearance, flavor, and aroma as glycerin, a sweet syrup that is frequently used in a variety of medications, foods, and toothpaste. Counterfeiters increase their profit by using the comparatively inexpensive diethylene glycol instead of the more harmful but more costly glycerin.
The chemical damages the kidneys, liver, and central nervous system in addition to paralyzing the muscles and impairing respiration. In Nigeria, children started becoming ill in November with inexplicable fevers and vomiting. Many had diarrhea, and some stopped urinating altogether. Children with comparable symptoms started showing up in hospitals around the nation as anxiety and fury increased.