Babies fed defective formula are still being treated for neurological damage

A year after the deaths from encephalopathy of two Israeli infants who were exclusively fed a soya formula made in Germany that lacked vitamin B1 (thiamin) ( BMJ 2003;327:1128) nine children are still being treated for serious neurological damage. Although they regularly undergo blood tests and other procedures several of them feel no pain and never cry. A recent Israeli cable TV documentary on the most seriously disabled children showed them staring into space and barely able to move. While some babies being treated are improving, others seem to be irreversibly damaged. A total of 35 …