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Indonesia will investigate cases of acute kidney injury that killed more than 20 children in its capital Jakarta this year, health authorities said on Wednesday.
The investigation comes as Gambian authorities say nearly 70 children have died from acute kidney injury after taking paracetamol syrup sold locally to treat fevers.
Indonesia will coordinate with World Health Organization (WHO) investigators who found “unacceptable” levels of diethylene glycol and potentially toxic ethylene glycol in four products made by Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd in New Delhi.
read more: Gambia cough syrup death: Maiden pharma not quality tested for propylene glycol, notice says
The syrups are not registered in the country, the Indonesian Medicines Regulatory Agency (BPOM) said in a statement.
The Jakarta health agency said 31 cases had been reported in the city since January, of which 68% had died.
The health ministry said it was talking to World Health Organization experts who were investigating the Gambia case and had formed a team with the country’s Paediatric Association (IDAI) and a Jakarta hospital to look into the matter.
The Health Ministry added that about 40 cases had been reported, but IDAI put it as the highest in the country at 131, according to Indonesian newspaper Kompas. It is unclear why the data differs.
IDAI was also quoted as saying that the cases in Gambia were not related to those in Indonesia.
The Ministry of Health said early findings suggested underlying poisoning was the cause of the disease, but no clear cause had yet been found. The ministry said further research was needed.
Indian authorities said on Wednesday they found 12 violations at a factory in Maiden and halted production of cough syrup at the factory.
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