Jakarta: After the Gambia, 99 children died after drinking cough syrup in Indonesia. After the death of children, the sale of all types of cough syrups and liquid medicines has been banned in Indonesia. According to media reports, 'Cough syrup was linked to the death of about 70 children in The Gambia. A few weeks later, similar news has come from Indonesia. Indonesia has said that some syrup medication was found to contain elements related to acute kidney pain (AKI). This led to the death of 99 young children this year. However, it is unclear whether the drug was imported or produced locally.

Indonesian health authorities said on Thursday that they have recorded about 200 cases of AKI among children, most of them children under the age of five. Earlier this month, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a global alert on 4 cough syrups linked to the deaths of nearly 70 children in the Gambia. The WHO then found that the syrups used there (manufactured by an Indian pharmaceutical company) contained unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol. The organisation had linked the syrup potentially to serious kidney diseases.

The same chemical compounds were found in some locally used medicines, Indonesia's health minister said on Thursday. According to media reports, Budi Gunadi Sadikin has said that ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol are found in some syrups used by children under five years of age. He, however, did not disclose how many cases were related to toxic drugs. Indonesian authorities have reported that cough syrups used in the Gambia were not sold locally. Dickie Budiman, an epidemiologist at Griffith University, told the media that the actual death toll could be higher than reported.

Joe Biden-Speak lost in transit to Pakistan

UNGA President names negotiators for Security Council reform

Iran student beaten to death by security forces for not singing songs