news bites
BMJ 2007; 334 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/sbmj.070395 (Published 01 March 2007) Cite this as: BMJ 2007;334:070395
United States
Fatal drug overdoses double
Fatal unintentional drug overdoses in the United States almost doubled from 1999 to 2004, to become the second leading cause of unintentional death after car crashes, government figures have shown. The number of deaths from unintentional overdoses rose to 19 838 in 2004 from 11 155 in 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They did not say which drugs played the greatest role. Researchers said that they thought sedatives and prescription painkillers were the main cause of the rise (www.ap.org).
China
Drug firm allegations
China has detained a former head of its food and drug agency as it conducts a national investigation into corruption in the country's fast growing drug industry. The probe was ordered by senior government leaders, including the prime minister, Wen Jiabao. Small drug makers in China have long been accused of producing counterfeit versions of drugs and selling them to China's hospitals and pharmacies with disastrous consequences. Now the government says corruption was a major part of the problem. It said it had detained Zheng Xiaoyu, who has …
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