Nigeria bans teething formula after 25 deaths

Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has ordered the recall of 3,000 bottles of a teething formula which contained diethylene glycol, a poisonous additive associated with recent Chinese tainted medicines, toothpaste and food products in several countries, including the USA and Panama, with at least 110 deaths in the latter country from tainted antihistamines and cough remedies (Marketletter June 18, 2007). The contaminant, which is used for antifreeze and brake fluid, appears to have been substituted for glycerin. The local manufacturer of My Pikin Baby Teething Mixture, Lagos-based Barewa Pharmaceuticals has been closed down by the federal authority.

Dora Akunyili, the NAFDAC's Director General, told reporters that 25 children had died with a further 11 being treated for kidney and liver damage. The symptoms are fever, convulsions, diarrhea, vomiting and urinary retention. She added that a similar case in 1990 led to about 200 infant deaths.