The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has finally resolved the case of the mysterious deaths of 22 people in Panama since midsummer. They have found that these deaths were not caused by a 'mysterious' fatal infectious disease but due to the presence of an industrial chemical in a cough syrup. The cough mixture was made by a governmental pharmaceutical factory.
After a Panamanian woman died due to kidney failure over the weekend, taking the death toll to 22, the Panamanian Health Department asked the CDC to help determine the causes for these mysterious deaths. Another 49 people had already been treated for kidney and central nervous system damage, 23 of which were still admitted in hospitals.
All the victims suffered from similar symptoms including kidney failure, nausea, diarrhea, paralysis and sagging of the facial muscles. Another similarity was that most of the victims were patients over 60 years old and had a history of diabetes or high blood pressure. Many of them were taking a blood pressure medication named lisinopril which was initially suspected to be causing these mysterious deaths but was ruled out after the initial tests. No contagious diseases were also found after analysis of blood, urine and tissue from autopsies.
But the health workers noticed that a similar product, a sugar-free cough syrup was found on many of the victims' bedside tables. When the samples from these bottles were tested at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, they found a poisonous chemical, diethylene glycol, which is used in antifreeze and paint products. This chemical is a poisonous substance which is used to keep products such as glue and cosmetics moist.
This contaminated cough medicine was found to be a product of a pharmaceutical factory operated by Caja de Seguro Social, which is a government hospital system in Panama. After this discovery, the Panamanian authorities have recalled the cough syrup and other similar products made in the government lab and have advised the affected people to take an antidote for the chemical.
