SFDA denies link between US deaths and Chinese-made drug

China’s State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) said no direct link has been proven between deaths in the US and the blood thinner heparin, AP reported. A US congressional subcommittee was told last month that contaminated heparin has been linked to 81 deaths and 785 severe allergic reactions. The heparin was made from ingredients imported from China, and was recalled by Baxter International, the maker of the anticoagulant. The SFDA said Chinese experts believed that the cause of the deaths could not yet be "ultimately identified" as due to heparin. The agency also said that besides the US and Germany, more than 10 other countries using heparin products had not reported any cases of adverse reactions.