The results of a study conducted by the Fogarty International Centre at the US National Institute of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, USA about the quality of drugs used to treat malaria have shocked the world. According to this report over 1/3rd of malaria drugs tested from Asia and Africa are found to be fake or faulty.
The findings consisting of drugs sold between 1999 and 2010 in 28 different countries of Asia and Africa, were published in the June 2012 issue of the Lancet Infectious Diseases Journal. The authors write that "the economic incentives for criminals of drug falsification surpass the risks involved in production and sales".
The study was conducted mainly of samples from the southeast Asia and sub Saharan Africa. Of the 1437 drugs from southeast Asia 36% were fake when tested and Africa had 20% of falsified drugs. Apart from counterfeiting other shortcomings were also found, including poor packaging of the drugs, resale of expired drugs in new packs and ineffective drugs. 46% of drugs in southeast Asia and 36% of sub -Saharan Africa were found to have a poor packaging. these include expired drugs that were repacked. 36% of all the samples did not have enough medication in them to fight malaria as they claimed.
Most of these countries do not have proper guidelines, regulations or laboratories for testing the medicines. The authors claim that of all the106 countries where malaria is prevalent only 3 African nations had labs capable of doing such needed tests. (Remember the controversy here that medicines banned in the west for awful side-effects were being dumped here in India?) They called for more stringent laws to fight this crime against humanity.
Source(s):
Malariaworld
CBSnews
AllAfrica
The findings consisting of drugs sold between 1999 and 2010 in 28 different countries of Asia and Africa, were published in the June 2012 issue of the Lancet Infectious Diseases Journal. The authors write that "the economic incentives for criminals of drug falsification surpass the risks involved in production and sales".
The study was conducted mainly of samples from the southeast Asia and sub Saharan Africa. Of the 1437 drugs from southeast Asia 36% were fake when tested and Africa had 20% of falsified drugs. Apart from counterfeiting other shortcomings were also found, including poor packaging of the drugs, resale of expired drugs in new packs and ineffective drugs. 46% of drugs in southeast Asia and 36% of sub -Saharan Africa were found to have a poor packaging. these include expired drugs that were repacked. 36% of all the samples did not have enough medication in them to fight malaria as they claimed.
Most of these countries do not have proper guidelines, regulations or laboratories for testing the medicines. The authors claim that of all the106 countries where malaria is prevalent only 3 African nations had labs capable of doing such needed tests. (Remember the controversy here that medicines banned in the west for awful side-effects were being dumped here in India?) They called for more stringent laws to fight this crime against humanity.
Source(s):
Malariaworld
CBSnews
AllAfrica
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