The Shri Vasantrao Naik Government Medical College and Hospital (SVNGMC), Yavatmal, has refuted reports claiming that a six-year-old boy had died after consuming cough syrup. In an official letter to the Medical Education and Drugs Department, Mumbai, the government medical college stated that the death of Shivam Gurnule (6), a resident of Pimpalkhuti in Kalamb taluka, was due to aspiration caused by 'food bolus', when food accidentally enters the airway, and not due to cough syrup consumption. According to hospital records, Shivam, who had cerebral palsy and developmental delay, was under treatment at a private facility for a mild fever and cough. He suddenly collapsed while eating on October 7 and was declared dead after he was brought to the hospital. Post-mortem findings revealed food particles in the trachea and bronchi, and lungs swollen with fluid (oedematous), consistent with death from choking. The viscera were preserved for chemical analysis. However, as a precautionary measure, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has collected the prescribed medicines for testing. The treating pediatrician, Dr Sarang Tarak, while talking to The Indian Express, stated that the child’s death 'does not appear related to side effects or toxicity of cough syrup.' “He was a child with cerebral palsy and was unable to sit upright while eating. His mother would often feed him while he was lying down, which may have caused the food to accidentally enter his airway," Dr Tarak clarified. The dean of Shri Vasantrao Naik Govt Medical College, Yavatmal, Dr Anil Krishnarm Batra, through an official release, also clarified that the available facts do not point to the case of death due to cough syrup. Assistant Commissioner, FDA (Yavatmal), Milind Kaleshwarkar, told The Indian Express that the samples of medicine given to Shivam by the doctor for the treatment of cough and cold have been collected as a precautionary measure due to the rising concerns of contamination of cough syrups. A report will soon be released in this regard.
