Poor-Quality Meds against infectious diseases

Poor-Quality Drugs Common in Developing Countries
LONDON (Reuters) - Fake and poor-quality drugs are common in developing countries and could hamper the global battle against infectious diseases such as malaria, doctors warned on Friday.

Two studies reported in the medical journal The Lancet found that many drugs available in poor countries were either counterfeit or did not have enough active ingredients to be effective.

High temperatures and humi***y can lead to the decomposition of some ingredients, and poor quality control in the manufacturing process means that ineffective drugs are being used.

``Sub-standard drugs sold in the pharmacies of less-developed countries could contribute to global microbial resistance and therapeutic failure of infectious diseases,'' said Robert Taylor, of the school of pharmacology at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland.

Taylor headed a team of Scottish, British and Nigerian scientists who examined the quality of 581 drug samples from 35 pharmacies in Nigeria.

They found that half of the medicines, from manufacturers in 12 countries, had levels of active ingredients that were either too high or too low. Many of the labels also did not indicate where the drugs originated.

``Our findings confirm that there is a high rate of sub-standard drugs of various types being supplied,'' Taylor added in the paper in the Lancet.

In a separate research paper in the journal, scientists from the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, England, said they had found large amounts of counterfeit artesunate, an anti-malaria drug, in shops in Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand and Vietnam.

Paul Newton and his colleagues said their findings showed the seriousness of the problem.

``Vigorous, coordinated campaigns to monitor drug potency, quality assurance, education, and legal action are needed urgently,'' they said.



Sayonara!!!Good Night, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite.




Được sửa chữa bởi - despi on 22/12/2001 07:29