Counterfeit Medicines: A Real Threat To The Society

Counterfeit drug is a pharmaceutical product which is produced and sold with the intent to deceptively represent its origin, authenticity or effectiveness. It may contain inappropriate quantities of active ingredients, may be improperly processed within the body or may contain ingredients that are not on the label, and is often sold with inaccurate, incorrect, or fake packaging and labeling. It is estimated that more than 10% of drugs worldwide are counterfeit, and in some countries more than 50% of the drug supply is counterfeit. In 2003, the WHO estimates that the annual earnings of counterfeit drugs were over US$32 billion. These are inadequate measures to determine the correct prevalence of the problem. There are several technologies that may prove helpful in combating the counterfeit drug problem include radio frequency identification which uses electronic devices to track and identify pharmaceutical items and electronic pedigree (e-Pedigree) system to track drugs throughout its distribution channel.