Spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, Mohammad Syahril, said the investigation into cases of acute kidney disorders in Indonesia led to the cause of poisoning of sirop drugs.
"The investigation by the Ministry of Health together with IDAI has led to one of the reasons (acute kidney disorders), namely drug poisoning," said Mohammad Syahril when delivering a press statement regarding acute kidney disorders followed by the Zoom network in Jakarta, Tuesday, October 25.
Syahril, who also serves as President Director of RSPI Sulianti Saroso, said that cases of kidney failure in Indonesia occur almost every year, with the average number of cases ranging from one to two patients per month.
"Acute kidney cases have caught the attention of the government after surging in August 2022 by more than 35 cases. Just like acute hepatitis, which has also soared," he said.
The spike in cases of acute kidney disorders occurred due to chemical contamination in certain drugs, some of which have been identified, including ethylene glycol (EG), diethylene glycol (DEG), and ethylene glycol butil ether (EGBE).
On that basis, the government adopted a policy to stop the use, circulation, and the provision of prescriptions for sirop drugs to the public as of October 18, 2022.
"The policy has temporarily succeeded in preventing the addition of new cases at RSCM as a reference for the national kidney," he said.
As a follow-up to testing sirop medicinal products that are suspected of containing harmful compounds by BPOM, the Ministry of Health has issued a permit to reuse 156 sirop drugs by consumers.
The related policy is contained in the Letter of the Acting Director General of Health Services No. SR.01.05/III/3461/2022 concerning Guidelines for the Use of Liquid / Sirup Medicines in Children in the context of Preventing the Improvement of KIA Cases.
"Cirop drugs beyond that, are still prohibited from being used in health facilities, including pharmacies, until they wait for further government announcements," he said.
The development of cases of acute kidney problems as of October 24, 2022, there were 255 cases originating from 26 provinces. A total of 143 patients were reported to have died or equivalent to 56 percent of the total cases.
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