DHAKA: The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease and Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) fell in a complicated situation after it had to suspend using its own rice based oral saline following a formality complex.

Patients and their relatives engaged in scuffles with the center’s doctors and nurses as the patients were unwilling to take the ORSaline produced by Social Marketing Company (SMC) as an alternative to the ‘rice saline’.

The icddr,b had to suspend using ‘rice saline’ after it was unearthed that they do not have a `formal approval’ from Directorate General of Drug Administration under Drugs (Control) Ordinance, 1982.

They came to know about lacking in having a formal approval following a move to stop production and marketing of `fake rice saline of a unscrupulous group’.

The suspension came at a time when diarrhoea patients are double in the hospitals, including of icddr,b, than the usual time.

The icddr,b in a release on Saturday announced that they decided to suspend their half-a-century old service of production and supply of rice-based saline and glucose at their hospitals and centers.

The Employees’ Multipurpose Co-operative Society has been producing and supplying the saline to the centers and hospitals.

”The decision would remain effective unless the registration of the saline under the Drugs (Control) Ordinance, 1982 was made from the Directorate General of Drug Administration,” said the release.

On-duty staff and nurses of the icddr.b, popularly known as Mohakhali Cholera Hospital, told banglanews on Sunday that people have more trust on the rice-based saline.

“They are not taking easily the suspension of using rice saline,” said an on duty official.

“Patients and their relative are scorning us since the morning... They did not want to understand the drugs administration, the registration or something else, they are angry with us,” said another staff.

When banglanews talked to several patients, it was also clear that they did not believe the reason of closing the service that was published in media.

The center’s short stay unit chief Dr Azharul Islam Khan told banglanews that they understand the sentiment of the patients and their relations.

“But, the rice saline service will remain suspended unless and until it get registration,” he said.

The Society Chairman Dr Anowar Hossain confirmed the matter saying: We have closed the production and the sale of all kinds of rice saline and we are processing for registration.”

“We have complete trusts on the saline produced by the Society, but we will provide saline from new supplier until the matter is settled,” said icddr,b Executive Director Prof John D Clemens.

In 1969, the then Cholera Research Laboratory, now icddr,b discovered the Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) and identified the rice-based ORS as a preferred treatment practice in 1982.

Since then rice saline is widely used for severe dehydrated patients.

BDST: 2115 HRS, APR 13, 2014