Fri, 13 Oct 2006 20:07:36 EDT
October 13, 2006
World Briefing | Americas
Panama: Tainted Syrup Now Linked to Deaths
By MARC LACEY
Cough and anti-allergy syrups tainted with a toxic chemical are to blame for the deaths of 21 people in Panama, the health minister, Camilo Alleyne, said. The government-made medications were mixed with diethylene glycol, which is used in antifreeze, a contamination that appears to have been done maliciously, he said. "This is a substance that should not be present in any way among the products or medicines," Mr. Alleyne said. Health officials shifted their attention away from Lisinopril, a hypertension medication that the authorities had earlier pulled from shelves as a precaution.
