Contaminated Intravenous Medicine in Chinese Hospitals Causing Deaths

In the midst of the Chinese melamine scare, reports are emerging of several deaths that were caused by contaminated intravenous medicine in Chinese hospitals.

At the No. 4 People's Hospital in Honghezhou, Kaiyuan City, Yunan Province, three patients died after receiving the intravenous called Ciwujia Fluid produced by the Wandashan Drug Company in Heilongjiang Province.

According to the Director of the hospital, Yang Ru, altogether 19 patients received an intravenous injection of this particular medicine. These patients developed nausea, shortness of breath and shivering after receiving the medicine. The patients who died passed away within three days of taking the drug. Three other patients remain in critical condition.

An administrator, Sun Yuemin, from the No. 2 Affiliated Hospital of the Kunming Medical Institute, said that all the patients who had developed adverse reactions had received Ciwujia exclusively. Some of the patients even had reactions while receiving the transfusion. Therefore, the hospital decided that Ciwujia was the likely cause of the patients’ reactions.

The Deputy Director of Honghezhou Health Bureau, Zeng Jianhe, said that, the Kaiyuan City People's Hospital had two patients in August who developed similar reactions after an intravenous transfusion of Ciwujia. However, the Ciwujia in both cases belonged to a different batch of the product. Additionally, another two cases were reported in Qujing City of patients dying after an injection of Ciwujia.

Authorities believe that the Ciwujia, in all cases, was contaminated with a pathological microorganism.

In another case of contaminated intravenous fluid, Guangzhou Daily reported that the Gaoming District Huali Hospital in Fushan City, Guangdong Province had found foreign objects in intravenous fluids on three separate occasions. Two of the objects appeared to be bugs, while another object was suspected to be mold.

The hospital, however, returned the contaminated medicine to the producer and no one was victimized in the incidents. The intravenous fluid in all three cases came from the same batch that was produced by the Litai Group Co. Ltd. in Guangdong Province.