A German manufacturer of a drug that caused thousands of babies to be born with disabilities about five decades ago is apologizing for the first time.
The drug, thalidomide, caused babies to be born with shorter arms and legs after their mothers took it during pregnancy in the 1950s and 1960s.
It was marketed to women to counter morning sickness, according to the Thalidomide Trust, a UK body set up in the 1970s to help those affected.
In addition to the disabilities, some children whose mothers took the drug suffered heart problems, damaged hearing or eyesight , and in some cases, brain damage.
The drug was pulled from sale in 1961 after doctors linked it to birth defects.
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