Several news reports have emerged claiming that the World Health Organization, WHO, has linked the death of 66 Gambian Children to cough syrups produced in India. This claim is Misleading.

Facts are:

WHO issued a medical alert which refers to four substandard products, identified in The Gambia and reported to WHO in September 2022. These Substandard medical products failed to meet either their quality standards or specifications and are, therefore “out of specification”

According to this summary, the four products by Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited (Haryana, India) did not provide guarantees to WHO on the safety and quality of these products.

Though the alert is coming after a surge in infant mortality linked to syrup consumption, WHO never mentioned that the products being red-lighted were responsible.

At the time of checks, the Indian health ministry said they were investigating the cough syrups.

Verdict

The claim that WHO linked the death of children to the syrups manufactured in India is Misleading and untrue.

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