Few thalidomide babies in N.Z.

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32589, 24 April 1971, Page 19

Few thalidomide babies in N.Z.

There had been no cases of thalidomide babies in New Zealand requiring compensation as granted in other countries, the Minister of Health (Mr McKay) said in reply to a correspondent to “The Press” who asked if the Government had done anything about obtaining compensation.

The correspondent, “New Zealander,” wrote.— “On television last night a thalidomide baby and her mother were shown, who were to be sent by public subscription to Edinburgh and Germany. Has the Government done anything about obtaining for the unfortunate parents of New Zealand’s thalidomide children the compensation they have been awarded in other countries where there are children so affected? In 1966, while travelling on the inter-island ferry, I struck up a conversation with a young mother, a deserted wife, who was struggling to rear her thalidomide baby (a girl then aged three) plus two other children, on social security.” “Thalidomide was first put on the market in 1958 in Germany and sold in many countries under various brand names. In New Zealand it was generally known by the name distaval, although several forms of the drug were imported from 1960 and prescribed as a sedative until the dangers became known,” said Mr McKay. “WITHDREW IN 1961” “The manufacturers withdrew all products containing thalidomide in December, 1961, when warnings were received that the drug was suspected of causing deformities. The sale of the drug in New Zealand was prohibited following the Gazette notice of August 16, 1962, and all stocks remaining in the country were destroyed.

“It is perhaps not generally understood that throughout medical history there have been recorded occasional cases of babies bom with defective or missing limbs. As yet, causes for this are not known, but research into the causes of all congenital deformities continues. It would be wrong, however, to pre-

sume that deformities of the limbs in children have only been caused by thalidomide taken during pregnancy. “The correspondent mentions a handicapped child of three years being taken overseas for assistance and the case of a young mother who was struggling alone to bring up a thalidomide baby as well as two other children. This incident occurred in 1966 when the child was three years old and she would have been born in 1963. It seems extremely unlikely that either mother had taken thalidomide or that any deformity in the children was caused by the drug. “FIVE CASES REPORTED”

“Five cases were reported in New Zealand of deformed babies bom after the mother had taken thalidomide during pregnancy. Three of the babies died within seven weeks of birth. Of the surviving children, one had an internal organic abnormality but has since had surgery and is now normal. The other had deformed arms, but the damage fortunately was not extensive and the ordinaty health and education services available in this country are sufficient to meet the family’s needs. The child’s father was given the name of the main New Zealand agents for preparations of thalidomide and an outline of the civil action which was taken against the distributors in the United Kingdom,” said Mr McKay.