4-year-old UP girl consumes cough syrup after mistaking it for juice, dies

A four-year-old girl died after reportedly drinking an entire cough syrup bottle in Hardoi. Doctors suspect an overdose, while a post-mortem examination will establish the exact cause.

In Short

• Alkaafiya was attending a naming ceremony with her mother and grandmother
• She told her grandmother about drinking medicine before continuing to play
• Relatives mistook her sleep for tiredness until late Thursday morning

A four-year-old girl died in Uttar Pradesh's Hardoi after consuming an entire bottle of cough syrup kept inside a room at a relative's house. The child fell asleep shortly after drinking the medicine on Wednesday evening and did not wake up the following morning.

Doctors suspect a cough syrup overdose, while the exact cause of death is awaited from the post-mortem report.

The incident took place in Peradi village. The child had gone there with her mother, Rehana, and grandmother, Shabina Begum, to attend a namakaran or naming ceremony on November 5.

According to the family, a 70-year-old relative was suffering from a cough and had taken medicine from a bottle kept in the room at around 7.15 pm on Wednesday. The child, who was playing nearby, picked up the bottle and drank the cough syrup.

The child reportedly approached her grandmother after drinking the medicine and asked her to close the bottle's cap. She also told her that she had consumed the cough syrup.

Speaking about the incident, Shabina Begum said the medicine belonged to a relative and had been kept inside the house. She said the girl continued playing for some time after consuming it before falling asleep.

The family initially assumed that the child had gone to sleep because of tiredness. However, when she did not wake up until around 10 am on Thursday, her relatives became worried and took her to a local doctor. The doctor advised them to shift her to a medical college for further treatment.

The girl was taken to the medical college, where doctors declared her dead at around 11.45 am on Thursday.

DOCTORS SUSPECT COUGH SYRUP OVERDOSE

Dr Amit Anand, in-charge of the medical college's emergency department, said the child was brought to the hospital in a dead condition. An electrocardiogram (ECG) examination also showed no heartbeat.

According to Dr Anand, the family told doctors that the girl had accidentally consumed the entire bottle of cough syrup. He said an overdose may have caused her death, but the post-mortem examination would establish the exact cause.

The doctor also cautioned against giving cough syrups to young children without medical advice. He said certain cough medicines contain ingredients that can cause excessive drowsiness and potentially serious complications, including breathing difficulties, in children.

Dr Anand said parents should follow medical advice and prescribed dosage instructions while administering medicines to children.

The girl was the elder of two daughters. Her death has left the family devastated, with her mother, Rehana, inconsolable.

The post-mortem examination is expected to establish the cause of death and determine whether the suspected overdose was responsible for the incident.

- Ends