Beijing: China has suspended the sale and use of an herbal injection used to treat heart disease after six people suffered adverse reactions and three died.

The State Food and Drug Administration said in a notice posted late yesterday that the six suffered "serious ill effects" after being injected with an extract from an herb called Ciwujia produced by Wandashan Pharmaceutical. The SFDA isolated two problematic batches and urged immediate nationwide reporting of any adverse effects.

A man who answered the telephone at Wandashan's marketing department in Heilongjiang, in China s northeast, said the company had stopped selling the herbal injection and had sent the two batches to the SFDA for testing. The man, who would give only his surname, Luan, said Wandashan has used Ciwujia in its products for more than 30 years without a problem. Luan said the injectable form of the herbal remedy was a relatively new product. "I haven't heard of any bad reaction of this injection before," Luan said.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the injections are often used to help treat thrombosis and heart disease. It said the six began to feel cold and vomited, with some going into a coma, after they were injected at the No. 4 People's Hospital in Honghe prefecture in the southwestern province of Yunnan.

Three died on Monday, Xinhua said.

Source : PTI