Police and health officials are investigating the deaths of two 67-year-old men who died while under treatment as outpatients at Beilinson Hospital in Petach Tikva.
The men died Sunday after drinking a standard laxative solution prepared at the hospital’s pharmacy, before undergoing intestinal X-rays.
They drank the mixture at home but felt ill a few hours later, and both died shortly afterward, one at the Sheba Hospital in Tel Hashomer and the other at Meir Hospital in Kfar Sava.
A third person given a dose from the same batch, took a few sips but did not drink the rest. She became sick but eventually recovered.
Pharmacologists say that the polyethylene glycol solution with the brand name of Golytely is used daily throughout the country. It is ingested by patients about to undergo a scan for suspected intestinal blockage.
Its side effects are generally very mild.
Police are seeking to determine whether the deaths resulted from the solution being mixed with other substances, either deliberately or by mistake.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
