The WHO cannot confirm a link between the instances at this time. Disturbingly, there have been reported cases of India-manufactured syrups with diethylene glycol or ethylene glycol contamination, leading to fatalities in countries like the Gambia and Uzbekistan.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), India's apex drug regulator, has revealed that at least five batches of cough and allergic rhinitis syrups from two Indian manufacturers contain higher than permissible levels of toxic contaminants—diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol. This comes after the World Health Organisation (WHO) previously raised alarms about contaminated syrups exported by India.
A Gujarat-based company's cough syrup and allergic rhinitis syrup were found to be contaminated during August testing. The cough syrup contained 0.118 percent ethylene glycol, while the allergic rhinitis syrup had 0.171 percent ethylene glycol and 0.243 percent diethylene glycol, exceeding the WHO's acceptable safety limit of 0.10 percent, The Indian Express reported.
Furthermore, three batches of a paracetamol syrup from a Tamil Nadu-based company were identified with the contaminants. Two batches had high levels of both contaminants, with ethylene glycol content reaching alarming levels—1.9 percent and 2.23 percent, as per the CDSCO report. The WHO had previously issued an alert against the same company in August, citing contaminated samples collected from Iraq.
Christian Lindmeier, a spokesperson for the WHO, revealed that over 20 products from two countries, India and Indonesia, involving more than 15 different manufacturers, have been impacted. These products primarily include cough syrup, paracetamol syrup, or vitamin syrup. The commonality in these syrups is the use of propylene glycol as a solvent, suggesting it could be the source of diethylene glycol or ethylene glycol contamination.
Although investigations are ongoing, the WHO cannot confirm a link between the instances at this time. Disturbingly, there have been reported cases of India-manufactured syrups with diethylene glycol or ethylene glycol contamination, leading to fatalities in countries like the Gambia and Uzbekistan. The WHO previously flagged 20 products by 15 different manufacturers from India and Indonesia for contamination, prompting necessary actions to safeguard public health.