One baby dies and 14 critically ill after poisoning via contaminated hospital drips

The babies affected were being cared for in neonatal intensive care units and were given the feed direct to their bloodstream.

16:57 05 June 2014

One baby has died while 14 others developed septicaemia after they were given contaminated feed direct to their bloodstream. A manufacturer of hospital feeds, which has been strongly linked to the incidents, said it is “saddened” by what has happened. 

 

ITH Pharma managing director Karen Hamling said in a statement: "ITH Pharma is very saddened to hear about the death of a baby in hospital, and that 14 others are ill with septicaemia.

 

"ITH Pharma is a specialist manufacturer of parenteral nutrition, which is given to babies in neonatal intensive care units.

 

"The products in question, which are no longer in circulation, are made to order for individual patients on a daily basis, in response to bespoke orders from hospitals.

 

"We are co-operating fully with the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) in the investigation, and are doing everything we can to help them establish the facts in this case as quickly as possible.”

 

The victims were mostly premature babies who were being cared for in neonatal intensive care units. They were given the feed directly to their bloodstream as they could not be fed by mouth. 

 

The cases were reported at:

 

•Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust, London (four counts)

•Guy's and St Thomas's NHS Foundation Trust, London (three counts)

•Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust (three counts)

•Addenbrooke's, Cambridge University Hospitals (two counts)

•Luton and Dunstable University Hospital (two counts)

•The Whittington Hospital, London (one count)