The head of a Shandong hospital, where an infant died after an injection, has been suspended, Yunnan Daily reported yesterday.

Authorities in Liaocheng, Shandong province, on Monday suspended Tian Jingong, president of Dongchangfu Traditional Chinese Hospital for mishandling the case, the newspaper said.

The parents had allegedly told doctors the child had turned pale and was suffering from cold feet and hands after the injection.

The local government has paid the infant's family 35,000 yuan ($5,100) as compensation, the newspaper said.

Four-month-old Yu Laihe died after being vaccinated against haemophilus influenza type B, or Hib, on Oct 19 at the hospital.

Hib is a bacterium that can cause meningitis and neumonia. Almost all victims are children under the age of 5. WHO recommends the Hib vaccine as part of regular immunizations.

The Hib vaccine producer, Wosen Biotechnology Company in Yuxi, Yunnan province, has asked its distributors and hospitals across the country to halt sales and use of the vaccine.

The company has also applied to the Yuxi food and drug administration to test samples of its suspected vaccine.

Zhang Yi, a spokesman of the company, told China Daily yesterday: "The vaccine was tested safe by us. We are willing to accept responsibility for any incident, if there is any."

The company has also sent staff to Liaocheng to investigate the death, he said.

More than 40,000 vaccines in the same batch had been used, but no other abnormal situation happened, he said.

(China Daily October 29, 2008)