A week after the World Health Organization (WHO) flagged the cough syrup manufactured in Punjab’s Derabassi, it has been confirmed that the drug contains an ‘unacceptable’ amount of toxic contaminants, diethylene glycol, and ethylene glycol.
According to media reports, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) at Baddi in Himachal Pradesh has confirmed the presence of toxic contaminants in the cough syrup.
Reportedly, the investigation is underway and the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has been updated on the matter. The cough syrup was manufactured by Punjab’s QP Pharmachem Ltd and is marketed by Haryana-based Trillium Pharma.
Punjab’s FDA has cancelled the manufacturer’s license for liquid drugs after the CDSCO confirmed the cough syrup was substandard, as per media reports.
On 25 April 2023, the WHO’s Medical Product Alert flagged a batch of substandard (contaminated) GUAIFENESIN SYRUP TG SYRUP identified in the Marshall Islands and Micronesia.
Guaifenesin is an expectorant used to relieve chest congestion and the symptoms of cough.
“Samples of the GUAIFENESIN SYRUP TG SYRUP from the Marshall Islands were analysed by quality control laboratories of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) of Australia. The analysis found that the product contained unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol as contaminants,” the global health agency said in its alert.
According to WHO, Diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are toxic to humans when consumed and can prove fatal. The UN Health agency warned that the substandard product referenced in this Alert is unsafe and its use, especially in children, may result in serious injury or death. Toxic effects can include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, inability to pass urine, headache, altered mental state and acute kidney injury which may lead to death, it added.
The alert was issued when samples of cough syrup from Micronesia and Marshall Islands were analysed by quality control laboratories of Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia.