| Counterfeit Drug |
Article Index for Counterfeit |
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| CATEGORIES ABOUT COUNTERFEIT DRUG | |
| drugs | |
| pharmaceutical industry | |
| criminal law | |
| public health | |
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OVERVIEW Counterfeit drugs can generally be classified by the following characteristics:
An individual who applies a counterfeit medication may experience a number of dangerous consequence to their Health , such as unexpected Side Effects , Allergic Reactions , or a worsening of their medical condition. A number of counterfeits do not contain any active ingredients, and instead contain Inert substances, which do not provide the Patient any treatment benefits. Counterfeit medications may also contain incorrect ingredients, improper dosages of the correct ingredients, or they may contain hazardous ingredients. The extent of the problem of counterfeit drugs is unknown. Counterfeiting is difficult to detect, investigate, and quantify. So, it is hard to know or even estimate the true extent of the problem. What is known is that they occur worldwide and are more prevalent in developing countries. It is estimated that upwards of 10% of drugs worldwide are counterfeit, and in some countries more than 50% of the drug supply is made up of counterfeit drugs. Furthermore, the World Health Organization estimates that the annual earnings of counterfeit drugs are over US$ 32 billion http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/2003/fs275/en/. There are several technologies that may prove helpful in combating this problem, such as Radio Frequency Identification which uses electronic devices to track and identify items, such as pharmaceutical products, by assigning individual Serial Number s to the containers holding each product. The FDA is working towards an Electronic Pedigree (ePedigree) system to track drugs from factory to pharmacy. This technology may prevent the diversion or counterfeiting of drugs by allowing wholesalers and pharmacists to determine the identity and dosage of individual products. A new technique, Raman Spectroscopy can be used to discover counterfeit drugs while still ''inside'' their packaging. {Link without Title} On May 6 , 2005 , the Chinese press agency Xinhua reported that the World Health Organization had established Rapid Alert System (RAS), the world's first Web -based system for tracking the activities of drug cheats, in light of the increasing severity of the problem of counterfeit drugs. BACTERIAL RESISTANCE Fake Antibiotic s with a low concentration of the active ingredients can do damage world wide. Courses of antibiotics that aren't seen through to completion allow bacteria to regroup and develop Resistance . TELEVISION The BBC, along with many other news outlets, reported on a and India . In the case of India, while it is against the law to make fake drugs for domestic use, it is not against the law to make fake drugs for export. SEE ALSO
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