Fatalities associated with ingestion of diethylene glycol-contaminated glycerin used to manufacture acetaminophen syrup--Haiti, November 1995-June 1996

Abstract

From November 1995 through June 1996, acute anuric renal failure was diagnosed in 86 children (aged 3 months-13 years) in Haiti; most (85%) children were aged < or = 5 years. On June 14, 1996, a joint investigation was initiated by the Ministry of Health of Haiti, the University General Hospital in Port-au-Prince, the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization, the Caribbean Epidemiology Center, and CDC. This report summarizes the preliminary findings of this ongoing investigation, which indicate that this outbreak was associated with diethylene glycol (DEG)-contaminated glycerin used to manufacture acetaminophen syrup.