Gambia

The firm ran into trouble after the US FDA informed it of 55 cases of adverse events on the use of its eye drops, some of which caused permanent loss of vision and at least one caused death

The new investigation strongly suggests that medicines contaminated with the toxins, imported into Gambia, led to the cluster of acute kidney injury among 78 children

The company has denied its drugs were at fault for the deaths in Gambia and tests by an Indian government laboratory found there were no toxins in them

Noida-based Marion Biotech's Dok-1 Max anti-cold medicine under scanner after the Central Asian nation blames it for 18 deaths

Even as it grappled with new viruses, the human race hit another milestone

WHO, however, said samples tested in Ghana and Switzerland were found to be contaminated

A parliamentary committee in The Gambia has recommended prosecution of an Indian manufacturer of cough syrups suspected of causing the deaths of at least 70 children in the West African country

Health ministry sources say no immediate plan to allow plant to re-open, it was closed for non-compliance with GMP, not for contamination issues

Asserts that testing done in labs in Ghana and Switzerland confirmed excess levels of contaminated syrups that are "dangerous and should not be in any medicine, ever"

'Irreparable damage' to Indian pharma's global image, drug regulator writes to WHO

Indian Health ministry sources say the Haryana-based drug maker is currently being probed for lapses in good manufacturing practices

Swaminathan was speaking to reporters on Thursday on the sidelines of the annual general meeting of the Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network (DCVMN) here

Chief scientist at the World Health Organization (WHO) Dr Soumya Swaminathan on Thursday said the death of children in Gambia, potentially linked to four Indian-made cough syrups, was a serious issue. Swaminathan was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the annual general meeting of the Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network (DCVMN) here. A WHO report has linked the death of 66 children in Gambia to four Indian-made cough syrups. "Certainly, the government is in touch with WHO as WHO actually provided the report based on the investigation which was done to prove that it was because of the diethylene glycol contamination. It is a very serious issue and it has to be taken very seriously," said Swaminathan. In India there are central as well as state-level drug regulators and there is a need to harmonize their operations, she said. "There are no mechanisms where regulators of different states can actually work together, do the inspections on each other's products," .

Nigeria has reportedly circulated the alert across all professional bodies, health care providers and supply chain associates

According to the media reports, Karnataka has directed all drugmakers to test samples of glycerine and propylene glycol and submit a report within seven days.

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

Pharma regulatory system needs re-examination. It's not just overseas buyers of Indian pharma products who are at potential risk. Counterfeit drugs remain a major threat in the domestic market

Dr S. Jaishankar spoke to his Gambian counterpart Dr. Mamadou Tangara and conveyed condolences on the deaths of young children allegedly linked to the contaminated cough syrups produced in India

Centre forms panel to analyse causal relation between deaths and cough syrups

The government on Wednesday formed a four-member panel of experts to examine the details and adverse event reports received from the WHO on the deaths of 66 children in The Gambia being linked potentially to the four made-in-India cough syrups, official sources here said. They said the committee will recommend further course of action to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) after examining and analysing the adverse event reports, causal relationship and all related details already shared by or to be shared by the World Health Organization. The development comes on a day the Haryana government ordered the halting of drug manufacturing at the Sonipat unit of Maiden Pharmaceuticals while the state drug regulator has asked it to explain within a week "many contraventions" found during a recent inspection, or face suspension or cancellation of license. The order to halt production came days after the WHO potentially linked four cough syrups manufactured at the facility to the ...