Indonesia says contaminated medicines linked to 99 deaths

Employees wait for customers at a counter displaying a notification saying that the sale of medicinal syrup is temporarily halted at a pharmacy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, Oct. 20, 2022. Indonesia temporarily halted the sales of medicinal syrups that treat fevers, coughs and colds after it found contaminated medicines that are suspected of causing the deaths of a number of children this year due to kidney failure. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia has found contaminated medicines that are suspected of being linked to the deaths of 99 children this year due to acute kidney injury, officials said Thursday.

Indonesia’s Food and Drug Monitoring Agency said it was tracing 26 medicinal syrups used to treat fevers, coughs and colds, noting that testing showed five such medicines had ethylene glycol levels “that exceeded the safe threshold,” it said in a statement.

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