"Haven't identified main cause": Colors Hospital's Director on Chhindwara cough syrup case

Nagpur (Maharashtra) [India] October 5 (ANI): Amid reports of the death of 11 children in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara district due to the consumption of Coldrif cough syrup, Director of Colors Hospital in Nagpur, Ritesh Agarwal, said that they haven't identified the main cause of the kidney complications in children who consumed cough syrup in Chhindwara.
Regarding the few children referred to Nagpur, Agarwal said the child admitted to the hospital was in critical condition after developing severe kidney problems, including swelling and high creatinine levels, following a fever and inability to pass urine for 24 hours.
The children were admitted to hospitals in Chhindwara and Nagpur, where some are still undergoing treatment, including dialysis.
Speaking to ANI on Saturday, Ritesh Agarwal said, "The patients coming to us are from Chhindwara, and one of the children is admitted here. The complaint was that the child had a fever 2-3 days ago, and after that, the child did not pass urine for 24 hours. Based on that complaint, the child was admitted to Chhindwara. But even after primary treatment there, the child did not pass urine, so the doctor conducted tests and found swelling in the child's kidneys. After that, the child was sent to Nagpur... The child arrived here in critical condition. We conducted blood tests and found that the child's creatinine and urea levels were significantly elevated... Then we conducted several tests to ensure the kidneys would function, but when the kidneys were still not working, we did further tests..."
He also said that the cause of a child's kidney-related illness is still unknown, though the child has now recovered after undergoing dialysis and showing normal kidney function for the past few days.
"We do not know whether this condition was due to a disease, the medicine, or some other chemical... The child is from an agricultural area where pesticides are heavily used... We performed dialysis on the child to help him recover from this condition. For the last 5-6 days, there has been no need for dialysis. The child's creatinine levels have normalised. Now the child's urine output is quite normal... We still haven't identified the main cause," Agarwal said.
Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav announced financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh each to the families of the 11 children who died due to consumption of Coldrif cough syrup in Chhindwara.
The Madhya Pradesh government has banned the sale of Coldrif cough syrup across the state and ordered raids to confiscate remaining stock.
According to officials, among the 11 deaths, 10 children were residents of Chhindwara district, while one belonged to Pandhurna district (newly formed district from Chhindwara).
The Union Health Ministry has issued a nationwide advisory on the rational use of cough syrups in children, highlighting the risks associated with their use.
In an advisory, the Ministry said, these are generally not recommended for children below five years, and above that, any use should follow careful clinical evaluation with close supervision.
The Ministry has written a letter to the Director of Health Services of all States and Union Territories in this regard. The advisory has been issued in view of child deaths in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan that were linked to the consumption of cough syrups.
Union Health Ministry has said that the multidisciplinary team is continuing its analysis of samples and other factors to ascertain the cause of deaths reported in Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the Rajasthan government has suspended Drug Controller Rajaram Sharma and halted the distribution of all 19 medicines supplied by Kayson Pharma.
The action was taken after two children died and several fell ill, allegedly due to the consumption of cough syrups distributed under the Chief Minister's Free Medicine Scheme.
According to Rajasthan Medical Services Corporation Limited, 10 thousand 119 samples of Kayson Pharma's medicines have been tested since 2012, with 42 found to be substandard. Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma has ordered a detailed investigation into the issue. (ANI)