The World Health Organisation (WHO) has linked 66 child deaths in The Gambia to four cough syrups that were manufactured in India.

On Wednesday, the organisation issued a medical product alert stating that the four syrups “contain unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol as contaminants”.

“This WHO Medical Product Alert refers to four substandard products, identified in The Gambia and reported to WHO in September 2022. Substandard medical products are products that fail to meet either their quality standards or specifications and are therefore ‘out of specification,'” the report reads in part.

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“The four products are Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup. The stated manufacturer of these products is Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited (Haryana, India).

“To date, the stated manufacturer has not provided guarantees to WHO on the safety and quality of these products.

“If you have these substandard products, please DO NOT use them. If you, or someone you know, have used these products, or suffered any adverse reaction/event after use, you are advised to seek immediate medical advice from a qualified healthcare professional and report the incident to the National Regulatory Authority or National Pharmacovigilance Centre.”

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The organisation also said Diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are toxic components which are fatal to humans when consumed.

The four products have been identified in The Gambia but may have been distributed to other countries or regions.

The Gambia is a nation situated in West Africa, just as Nigeria.