Child Acute Kidney Injury Cases Dropping, Says Health Ministry

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Ministry of Health announced that health authorities have recorded a drop in acute kidney injury cases in children early into November. Ministry of Health spokesperson dr. Muhammad Syahril said that there were zero cases within the last three days.

Syahril elaborated that the total number of atypical progressive acute kidney failure patients as of November 3 amounted to 323 patients with 99 recoveries, 190 deaths, and 34 child patients undergoing treatment.

Areas with the highest number of cases are Jakarta (82 cases), West Java (41 cases), Aceh (32 cases), East Java 26 cases, and West Sumatra (21 cases).

"Starting from November 1 to November 3, the Health Ministry has not recorded any new acute kidney injury cases," said Syahril in a press statement on Friday, November 4, 2022. 

However, health authorities recorded one fatality on November 1, 2022, in West Kalimantan and one new case on November 3, 2022, from North Sumatra. The patient who died on November 3, based on records, died after taking the following medicines: Unibebi Fever (drop), Fitrazinc (drop), and Cotrimoxazole (drop).

Syahril asserted that acute kidney injuries in children have dropped since the issuance of the Health Director General of Healthcare Services Circular Letter on October 18, 2022, which urged health workers and pharmacists to stop administering syrup medicines.

The Food and Drugs Monitoring Agency (BPOM) previously recalled eight syrup medicines that allegedly contained contaminants in the form of Ethylene Glycol (EG), Diethylene Glycol (DEG), and Ethylene Glycol Butyl Ether (EGBE). 

TEMPO.CO | INTERN

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