Antibiotics Blamed for Deafness in China
Hundreds of Chinese children have become deaf and mute after receiving excessive doses of antibiotics, the English-language China Daily reported Wednesday.
The paper quoted a health journal as saying that the victims, mostly under the age of 3, were treated for bronchitis or flu by rural medical workers ignorant of proper dosages.
One child became deaf and suffered nerve damage after receiving injections of the antibiotic streptomycin for 28 days, the paper said. It said 948 out of 1,168 students in Shanghai’s School for the Deaf and Mute had received improper medical treatment as children, including excessive doses of antibiotics.
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