Wednesday 24 July 2013

Brazil's new generation of Thalidomide babies

 
A new scientific study seen exclusively by the BBC indicates that the drug Thalidomide is still causing birth defects in Brazil today. It's been given to people suffering from leprosy to ease some of their symptoms, and some women have taken it unaware of the risks they run when pregnant.
Thalidomide was first marketed in the late 1950s as a sedative. It was given to pregnant women to help them overcome morning sickness - but it damaged babies in the womb, restricting the growth of arms and legs.

About 10,000 Thalidomide babies were born worldwide until the drug was withdrawn in the early 1960s. In most countries the Thalidomide children became Thalidomide adults, now in their 50s, and there were no more Thalidomide babies.
But in Brazil the drug was re-licensed in 1965 as a treatment for skin lesions, one of the complications of leprosy.
Leprosy is more prevalent in Brazil than in any other country except India. More than 30,000 new cases are diagnosed each year - and millions of Thalidomide pills are distributed.
Researchers now say 100 Brazilian children have injuries exactly like those caused by Thalidomide.
"A tragedy is occurring in Brazil... it is a syndrome which is completely avoidable," says Dr Lavinia Schuler-Faccini, a professor at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul.
I just hope this drug is not being taken in this country.

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