Ginseng Injections Responsible For Three Deaths In China

The injection of Siberian ginseng extract has caused the deaths of three people in south-western China.

China’s health ministry web site announced the deaths, which occurred in Yunnan province after six hospital patients received the injections.

Currently, sales and use of the ginseng extract had been suspended.

Melamine poisoning of milk, which has killed four babies and made thousands ill in a months-long scandal, has also been amongst the ministry’s troubling concerns.

The ministry said 10,666 babies remained in hospital receiving treatment for renal problems caused by the melamine contamination of baby milk formula.

Some legal action has been taken against the Sanlu Group, the manufacturer at the center of the scandal, as well as the state quality supervision body.

Wandashan Pharmaceutical, based in the north-eastern Chinese province of Heilongjiang, manufactured the ginseng injection.

Siberian ginseng is often used in China to treat heart disease and thrombosis.

Six patients at the Number Four People’s Hospital in Honghe prefecture on Sunday suffered “serious ill effects” including chills, vomiting and sudden drops in blood pressure after receiving the injections.

Official media reported that some went into a coma and three of the six died on Monday.

Two problematic batches of the extract, made from an herb called “ciwujia” have been isolated, according to the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA). They have urged immediate nationwide reporting of any adverse effects.

An employee at Wandashan’s marketing department in Heilongjiang, in China’s north-east, said the company had stopped selling the herbal injection and had sent the two batches to the SFDA for testing.

He claimed the company had used ciwujia in its products for more than 30 years without any problem.

Although he said the injectable form of the herb was relatively new, he hadn’t heard of any bad reactions to this injection before.

China’s pharmaceutical industry is highly lucrative but poorly regulated.

The country’s former top drug regulator was executed last year for taking millions of dollars in bribes to approve substandard medicines, including an antibiotic that killed at least 10 people.