Three people have now died, while 78 more are struggling with symptoms ranging from chest pain to anaphylactic shock, after receiving a hazardous antibiotic injection.

The father of a patient holds a bottle of clindamycin phosphate glucose at the No 2 Hospital Affiliated to Harbin Medical University on Thursday night. [Xinhua]

On Saturday the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) said the sufferers who had all being injected with clindamycin phosphate glucose were now spread across 10 provinces.

The injection, an antibiotic used to treat infections, is produced by the Anhui Huayuan Worldbest Biology Pharmacy Co, a subsidiary of the Shanghai Worldbest Co Ltd, in East China's Anhui Province.

On Thursday, the SFDA called for a halt to its use, after receiving reports that patients who received the injections developed severe adverse reactions such as chest, kidney or stomach pains, vomiting and even anaphylactic shock.

The first case was reported on July 27 in northwestern Qinghai Province.

"An investigation into the links between the drug and the cases has been launched and no new cases have been reported since the ban," said a statement issued by the SFDA.

The drug's first victim was a six-year-old girl who died in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province on July 27. Her death was followed by a 48-year-old patient in Central China's Hubei Province, who was reported to have died on August 2 after taking the same batch of the injection. The third death was a man in his 70s in North China's Hebei Province.

In Tongzhou District of Beijing, a 32-year-old woman died after taking clindamycin on Saturday. However, doctors denied the case had anything to do with the injection from the Anhui Company because her injection was made by a different company.

Also on Saturday, the Health Ministry sent a team of experts to the Harbin No 2 Hospital affiliated to the Harbin Medical University, where 15 people have been hospitalized after receiving the injection.

The team will collect information and inspect the patients.

Li Jun, director of the administrative office of the Heilongjiang Provincial Food and Drug Administration, said they were busy developing a test to see whether these cases had been caused by the injection.

In an interview with China Central Television, Luo Huayu, president of the labour union of the Anhui company, said there might have been something wrong with the sterilization process.

If confirmed this will be the second confirmed case of severe drug poisoning so far this year. In May and June a bogus medicine produced by Heilongjiang's Qiqihar No 2 Pharmaceutical Company shocked the country by claiming 11 lives.

(China Daily 08/07/2006 page1)