The death of the 19-year-old young woman yesterday after taking Optalgin, is not the first case of death this year in Israel after using the drug.
Esti Cohen, 76 years old from Kibbutz Dafna in the north, died last May after taking Optalgin drops.
The family claims that the doctors explained that Cohen died as a result of Opthalgin poisoning.
We emphasize that the official cause of death, according to the death certificate, is infection and not poisoning.
Cohen was a healthy and energetic woman, who worked almost full-time, walked five kilometers every day, rode a bicycle and played with her grandchildren. A month and a half before her death, she fell and broke her wrist. After the surgery, she started using Opthalgin drops.
About two weeks later, a fungus developed in her mouth and she became weaker.
She later performed a blood test, where it was found that she was in a state of immunodeficiency and almost without white blood cells.
At the hospital where she was admitted, the medical staff determined that it was Opthalgin poisoning, which destroyed the immune system.
13 days later in the hospital, after breathing and CPR she died.
The late Esti Cohen. Died from Opthalgin poisoning, photo: courtesy of the family
"Following a post I published and the response it received, I heard many stories from more people whose relatives died from Opthalgin poisoning or people who were injured and underwent a bone graft," says her daughter Uri Cohen Medina.
"I saw that they say that the statistic is one in a million, but it is possible that there are many people who were affected and there is no report on it. The entry on my mother's death certificate is an infection and not Opthalgin poisoning," she says.
Following the death of the young woman, Cohen's daughter adds: "There is no way to expect this. The girl who died was 19 years old and it's like Russian roulette. You never know who it will fall on. It has nothing to do with the amount or the way of taking it. In the US it is illegal to use At Opthalgin.
"I am calling on the Ministry of Health - if you have decided that the statistics are not enough to take the drug off the shelves, make it a medicine with a doctor's prescription, and then the doctor can explain what Opthalgin poisoning is and what the signs are," she suggests.
"My mother bought Optalgin on a shelf in a convenience store. I understand that there are people who are addicted to this pill, it is a non-addictive pain reliever, but it must not be sold freely, that's for sure."
Wolfson Hospital, photo: Danny Maron
The 19-year-old took Opthalgin, and then arrived at Wolfson Hospital yesterday after CPR, in critical condition.
She was transferred to intensive care and was even connected to an ACMO device that replaces the activity of the heart and lungs, but she died about ten hours later.
The doctors speculate that she suffered from bone marrow damage, which in the past has been rarely linked to taking Opthalgin.
The unusual event was reported to the Ministry of Health and published for the first time in News 13.
The Ministry of Health received the details of the young woman's death from Wolfson Hospital today.
The ministry has the authority to decide whether to establish a control and quality committee, which can comprehensively examine issues related to the use of Optalgin.
Following three cases of complications caused by taking Optalgin in 2012, the Ministry of Health set up an inspection committee, but this determined that Optalgin would continue to be sold in Israel without a prescription, and generally recommended that chronic patients "consult the attending physician before taking painkillers."
The Teva company, which manufactures the drug, said in response to Esti Cohen's death: "First, we would like to share in the family's grief. We would like to emphasize that Dipiron, the active ingredient in Optalgin, has been marketed in Israel and in many countries around the world for decades and many millions of patients use it, every year. For pain relief - effectively and safely.
"It should be emphasized that Optalgin meets the strict requirements of the Ministry of Health, as well as other central health authorities in the world. The rare side effect is not unique to Optalgin, but is known and recognized in dozens of different drugs. In the vast majority of cases, with proper treatment, it can be dealt with," they said in Teva.
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