Pakistani medicos are unhappy about the use of the drug Parlodel, banned in the US and Canada. The doctors say that the drug's common side effects -- low blood pressure, excessive vomiting, severe headache and nausea -- warrant its withdrawal from the market.

Palodel, which reduces post-natal lactation, has a dismal record. First approved in the USA in 1980, 531 severe reactions -- including 32 deaths -- were reported in women between 15 to 45. In 1989, the US Food and Drug Administration banned it. A Swiss firm, however, continues to produce the drug.