The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has confirmed the presence of high concentrations of methanol in locally prepared alcoholic/herbal concoctions linked to the deaths of 48 persons in Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State.
The agency, in an update issued on Friday by its Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said 182 cases had so far been recorded in connection with the incident, with 90 persons admitted and discharged, six still hospitalised and 31 treated as outpatients.
The agency said five affected persons became totally blind, while two others suffered partial blindness, with symptoms reported among victims including headache, general body weakness and pain, visual disturbances, difficulty in breathing and altered consciousness. Some cases reportedly deteriorated rapidly.
The incident, which was first reported in early September, was initially linked to 31 deaths involving 20 persons in Odigbo Town and 11 in Araromi-Obu. However, further investigation and surveillance increased the reported death toll to 48.
NAFDAC said the affected communities include New Town, Odole, Okele, Orita Odigbo, Araromi-Obu and Oniparaga, with Odigbo Town and Araromi-Obu particularly affected.
The agency said its investigations had so far led to the arrest of 15 persons suspected to be connected with the production, sale and distribution of the implicated locally produced alcoholic/herbal beverages.
Giving details of the laboratory investigation, NAFDAC said 15 unlabeled samples of the suspected concoction were subjected to toxicological, microbiological and chemical screening.
It said acute oral toxicity tests conducted using laboratory mice recorded critically sick animals in all the samples, while approximately 50 per cent mortality was recorded in six of the 15 samples tested.
The agency further disclosed that chemical screening detected Cannabis indica in 11 samples, while gas chromatography confirmed the presence of high concentrations of methanol.
Methanol, NAFDAC explained, is highly toxic and can cause severe health effects, including blindness, organ failure and death when ingested.
The agency, however, said the laboratory findings were still preliminary and that further confirmatory tests were ongoing to determine the exact concentration of methanol and identify other possible toxic agents in the concoctions.
“Preliminary findings require further confirmatory analyses,” the agency said, adding that the combination of high mortality recorded in animal testing and confirmed methanol contamination strongly suggested that the samples posed a serious public health risk.
NAFDAC said the findings had necessitated immediate regulatory intervention to prevent further harm, while surveillance, case management, investigation and risk-control measures were ongoing.
The agency said the geographical spread of the incident and the increasing number of deaths and persons requiring medical attention constituted a significant public health concern.
It added that the figures remained subject to verification as investigation and surveillance activities continued.
NAFDAC commiserated with families who lost their loved ones in the incident and urged continued cooperation with ongoing investigations.