Drug linked to child deaths is still available in India

A drug known to have serious side effects and which has been banned in parts of Europe is still available in India, despite reports in the press of several deaths in the subcontinent among children who had been taking it. There has been a media furore in India over reports of adverse reactions to nimesulide, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, which has been reported as causing liver toxicity. Although it was approved for use in India in 1994 for painful inflammatory musculoskeletal disorders, it is often used for pain relief and fever. Dr Chandra Mohan Gulhati, editor of India's drug information bulletin, the Monthly Index of Medical Specialities , said that the drug had not …