Current list of low-quality drugs. How to check the authenticity of a medicine: methods and tips to distinguish counterfeit medicines

Counterfeit drugs, at best, simply will not bring any benefit; at worst, they can cause irreparable harm to health, even death. Medicines in pharmacies are checked for quality by the relevant regulatory authorities, but they are only able to cover about 20% of medicines. We will tell you in our article how to buy medicine at a pharmacy without counterfeiting.

Types of counterfeit medicines

There are 4 main types of counterfeit drugs in our pharmacies:

“Dummy” - drugs that do not contain the substances specified in the instructions. Usually chalk, flour, starch, and sugar are used instead. In principle, pacifiers are safe, but only until recovery depends on their use;

medicines in which more expensive and effective ingredients are replaced with less effective cheap analogues. The result from using such drugs is several times lower than expected;

with a reduced dosage of active ingredients. The positive effect of their use is negligible;

manufactured in violation of technology. The composition and dosage of such medicines are kept within normal limits, but the quality is quite poor due to non-compliance with the production regime. Such medications may have a shorter shelf life than indicated on the package or may have a weak effect.

Another case of “wrong” drugs that cannot be classified as counterfeit, but from which people suffer, is drug substitution. For example, instead of pills that lower blood pressure, the blister may contain pills that increase it.

For more information about counterfeit medicines, watch the video:

What drugs are counterfeited most often?

In most cases, drugs are counterfeited:

whose cost is in the price range from $4 to $35. There is no point in making very cheap ones, since their production simply may not pay off, and producing counterfeits of expensive drugs is unprofitable, since consumer demand for them is low;

actively advertised. Advertising stimulates demand and guarantees high levels of sales and profits.

In most cases, the following are fake medicines in pharmacies:

Methods for identifying counterfeit drugs

Alas, there is no method that would allow us to select original pharmaceutical products and weed out counterfeit products with 100% probability. However, there are a number of rules that, if followed, will significantly reduce the chances of buying counterfeit medicines in pharmacies.

According to the law, in Ukraine and the Russian Federation, medications cannot be returned. However, you can return a low-quality medicine, but you will have to provide an expert opinion proving that you were sold a counterfeit drug. In Ukraine, laboratory tests will have to be done at your own expense, but in Russia such a service is provided only to legal entities. So it is unlikely that you will be able to defend your right. Therefore, it is better to try to prevent this by checking medications in pharmacies before purchasing.

In the Soviet Union, all medicines were real. Citizens of the Land of the Soviets had never heard that someone might ever dare to counterfeit a medicine. Today, even children know about counterfeit medicines that are allegedly hidden on pharmacy shelves. How true is this information? And is it possible to live in peace, risking running into a fake?

Tricks of big numbers

The World Health Organization reports that in developing countries the share of counterfeit drugs is 10%, and in developed countries - 1% of total turnover. In Russia, the statistics on counterfeit medicines are ambiguous. The figures published by official bodies and the data of politicians, and even more so journalists, differ tenfold. Thus, the country’s only source of official data, Roszdravnadzor, publicly states that the number of counterfeit drugs out of the total number of batches is only 0.02%. At the same time, officials from the State Duma committee do not hesitate to claim that every fifth medicine in Russia is falsified. And if you believe the press...

Horror stories on TV

If you believe some television programs, only the lucky ones manage to buy real medicine in Russian pharmacies. High popularity ratings for information programs exposing unscrupulous producers are forcing television workers to increasingly increase the intensity of passions.

Tragic music, the stern voice of the presenter, flashing pictures of medicines (by the way, most of them are completely real) and the traditional statement “This applies to everyone!” The atmosphere is getting gloomy. The idea that a quick death at the hands of a pharmacist armed with a counterfeit is quite likely is firmly ingrained in the consumer’s brain.

In pharmacies, the echo of each of these programs is heard as soon as the first TV viewers cover the distance from the sofa to the counter. Anxious clients meticulously look for counterfeits in every pack of aspirin and accuse the pharmacist of all mortal sins. In response, he only wearily waves away the standard phrase about certificates. What is the situation with counterfeits from the inside?

Fraudsters - fight!

Pharmacists cannot explain to the average person in a nutshell what efforts are being made to ensure that counterfeits do not go on sale. And the effort is really considerable. Each series of a medicinal product sold in the Russian Federation is subject to mandatory certification. If the drug is imported from abroad, then samples of each batch are taken for analysis at customs points; Domestic medicines are confiscated from manufacturing plants. This procedure is controlled by the omnipresent Roszdravnadzor. Thus, the drug goes into wholesale and then retail sale only after receiving government documents guaranteeing its quality.

In December 2014, the State Duma adopted a federal law providing for criminal liability for the production of counterfeit medicines. Now, fraudsters addicted to pharmaceutical production may face up to 12 years of imprisonment. Market participants selling counterfeits, both medicines and dietary supplements, can also end up in places not so remote.

Large wholesalers, who value their licenses, carefully monitor the quality of their drugs. And large pharmacies, which value their statutory documents no less, purchase medicines only from reliable companies that have direct contracts with foreign and domestic manufacturers. And therefore, clients of chain, long-established or large pharmacies can be confident in the quality of their medicines.

Special signs? There were none

What if you still have doubts about the origin of the drug? Is it possible to distinguish real medicine from a counterfeit right at the pharmacy? Unfortunately, modern fakes are difficult to recognize not only for the average consumer, but also for a specialist who encounters the original many times a day. Fraudulent manufacturers take into account the smallest details, and it is sometimes possible to identify counterfeit products only after chemical testing.

However, frightened buyers try to discern something alarming in each product package and sometimes even look at something! But external changes in the packaging and even the drug itself in most cases do not at all indicate a fake. Usually this is only a consequence of the work of marketers - companies change packaging design quite often. If you are faced with such a situation, ask your pharmacist for the phone number of a medical representative of the company that produces the drug. He will certainly tell you about all the nuances and dispel your fears.

If snow-white (cream, bright green, etc.) tablets suddenly change color, and a precipitate appears in a clear solution, do not rush to conclusions. Read the instructions more carefully, and you will most likely find out that this physical phenomenon is acceptable.

Guide to action

But what to do when the soul is still restless? There are several simple rules that, if followed, will reduce the likelihood of purchasing a counterfeit to a minimum.

Firstly, forget about buying medicines secondhand (for example, in an exchanger on a forum), where you can easily buy a real pig in a poke.

Secondly, no matter how tempting the price of a drug in a little-known online pharmacy may be, do not give in to the temptation to save money. Figures show that the largest number of counterfeits are “hidden” in the depths of the virtual trade of small, faceless sellers.

Thirdly, buy medications only from trusted pharmacies - chain pharmacies, well-known ones that have earned a name through honest sales.

And lastly: if you have any questions, study the certificate when choosing medications - you have every right to do so. And then you will sleep peacefully after watching any of the most terrible “revealing” programs.

Marina Pozdeeva

Photo thinkstockphotos.com

1. WHAT IS FAKE

The first counterfeit detected on the Russian pharmaceutical market was the blood substitute reopoliglucin produced by the Krasnoyarsk Pharmaceutical Plant. This happened in 1997. Since then, the number of counterfeit drugs has increased many times and now numbers in the hundreds. According to a recent statement by Russian Deputy Minister of Health Anton Katlinsky, every thirtieth medicine sold in our pharmacies is counterfeit. But these are official data. According to unofficial estimates, up to 30% of all pharmaceutical products are falsified.

Both expensive and cheap drugs are counterfeited. Most often these are well-known medications with pronounced medicinal properties. The largest number of counterfeits are found among antibiotics, which is especially dangerous. After all, such drugs are taken for serious illnesses, often when there is a real threat to the patient’s life.

67% of counterfeits are products of the domestic pharmaceutical industry, 31% are foreign-made, 2% come to us from the CIS countries. Among Russian manufacturers, Bryntsalov was particularly noted for counterfeiting drugs. Anton Katlinsky reported at a press conference that the drugs Rulid and Nootropil were falsified at the enterprises of the largest domestic pharmaceutical magnate. By the way, this is not the first accusation against Bryntsalov. Since 1998, the Danish company Novo Nordisk has been trying to get its enterprises to stop producing and selling insulin that does not meet the quality standards of this company under the Novo Nordisk brand. In Volgograd, more than 1,000 diabetic patients were hospitalized due to complications that developed due to the use of counterfeit insulin.

The largest suppliers of imported counterfeits are China, India, Pakistan, Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria, Latvia.

2. HOW TO FAKE

There are four main methods of counterfeiting medicines.

"Dummy drugs." Most often they contain no medicinal base at all. By the way, this does not mean that they do not cure. It has been proven that for some people, placebos—that’s what doctors call “dummy drugs”—act no worse than real medications. Theoretically, their use is harmless. Although, if during a heart attack you take a “pacifier” instead of, for example, nitroglycerin, everything can end in disaster. The most famous example of a “dummy drug” is associated with the antibiotic sumamed from the Croatian company Pliva. Several years ago, this company began exporting medicine to Russia. After some time, doctors began to complain that it did not give the expected effect. Representatives of Pliva bought their medicine from several pharmacies and sent it to Zagreb to the laboratory. The test showed that the capsules did not contain the active substance.

"Drugs-imitators." The active ingredient in them is usually replaced with a cheaper and less effective one. This is the most dangerous counterfeit: there is no guarantee that the replacement will not be deadly in your case. Example? Please. The shampoo called Nisaril is a double of the famous Nizoral from the Belgian pharmaceutical company Janssen Pharmaceutica, but produced in Belarus by a certain Minsk PC LLC Belkosmex. Not only the name and purpose are similar, but also the labels - a rhombus with droplets in the center, as well as a four-color background, from white to brown.
"Altered Medicines" They contain the same medicinal substance as the original, but in larger or smaller quantities. This is also dangerous. You are not guaranteed either a therapeutic effect or the absence of side effects.

A similar fake was discovered not long ago in St. Petersburg. One entrepreneur organized a clandestine production of the antiseptic chlorhexidine in his warehouse. There was a medicinal base in it, but only in much greater quantities than necessary. But chlorhexidine is a very strong antiseptic. An overdose can have serious consequences.

"Copy medicines." The most common type of counterfeit in Russia. They contain the same substances as the original, and in the same quantities. However, where and from whom the unknown manufacturer bought the substance for production is unknown. Although seemingly innocent, this type of counterfeit is more dangerous than a “dummy”. There is no quality control guarantee. In other words, when buying such a counterfeit, you are relying on the conscience of an underground pharmacist.

WHY THEY FAKE

There are many reasons. But perhaps the most important thing is that counterfeiting drugs is a very profitable business. According to experts, in terms of profitability it ranks third after the sale of drugs and weapons.

The second reason is due to the fact that our legislation, in fact, does not provide for criminal liability for counterfeiting medicines. There is not even the term “falsified medicines” in the Federal Law. True, everything may change soon. A bill is already being prepared according to which for counterfeiting medicines they will be sentenced to up to 8 years in prison, as is done, for example, in Germany.

Drug counterfeiters benefit from different price levels for the same drugs. But that's not even the main problem. There is such a thing as “synonymous drugs”. These are the same drugs, but with different names. For example, synonymous drugs are acyclovir, herperax and zovirax or nosh-pa, drotaverine and spasmol. So their prices can vary hundreds of times!

And finally, intermediaries. We have much more of them than, say, in Western European countries. There are 2,500 distributors involved in the purchase and distribution of medicines in Russia, 10 in Germany, and only 4 in France.

HOW TO RECOGNIZE A FAKE

Good fakes are no different from genuine drugs either in packaging or in appearance. The barcode, series and release date, and hologram on the packaging inspire complete consumer confidence. But, nevertheless, in front of you there may be a real fake. It can only be distinguished using chemical-pharmaceutical analysis. For this purpose, more than 80 specialized laboratories operate in 69 regions of Russia.

But still, most fakes are not made at such a high level, and an ordinary buyer can distinguish them. It is enough to carefully consider the medicine offered to you and the accompanying documents. It happens that they are made carelessly. Poor printing design, unclear engraving of the logo, a rough package instead of a glossy one, instructions with errors, lack of expiration date indication, barcode that does not correspond to the country of origin indicated on the package.

If the drug has not been prescribed to you before, refer to the RLS reference system for information about it. In “RLS - Encyclopedia of Medicines” there is a section “Medicine Identifier”, containing high-quality photographs of dosage forms and packaging of drugs that have a risk of counterfeiting. These directories are accessible, and in them you can always find information about all medicines registered in Russia. Involve a specialist (doctor or pharmacist) in your search, start your search on the website

There are five rules that certainly do not make the risk zero, but can significantly reduce it.

First rule- “It’s worth looking at the price.”

If drugs cost up to 250.00 rubles or over 2,000.00 rubles, then such drugs are counterfeited much less frequently, in the first case due to the fact that the level of costs associated with the cost of setting up the production of drugs does not allow for the expected profit, in the second because expensive drugs are rarely bought.

According to statistics, most of the market for counterfeit drugs is in the price range from 500.00 to 1,500.00 rubles, and this is perhaps the most capacious niche in which drugs are purchased quite often.

Second rule– “Study the packaging and instructions.”

And if manufacturers of counterfeit drugs still try not to skimp on packaging so that the packaging looks as close as possible to the original, then, as a rule, fraudsters pay less attention to the quality of execution of instructions for counterfeit drugs, primarily due to the fact that buyers rarely use it get acquainted and study her. But many manufacturers, specifically in order to somehow protect themselves from counterfeits, try not to skimp on the quality of execution of not only the packaging, but also the instructions of the drugs. Therefore, the instructions of the originals, unlike their fakes, as a rule, do not have blurry, hand-made execution on a household printer, but clearly printed and easily legible typographic text. Plus, original manufacturers try to write the instruction text in a color other than black, again, to somewhat reduce the likelihood of counterfeiting. That is, at least in terms of color and print clarity, you can immediately detect the difference.

Third rule- “Ask for a certificate.”

You can ask the pharmacy for a certificate of conformity. This document must be provided upon the first request of buyers. If, for example, you applied not to the main pharmacy, but to a pharmacy point, and at the moment the required certificate is not available in this pharmacy, then again, at your request, to any pharmacy point, no matter where it is located, from the central office of the pharmacy chain a certificate must bring or fax a copy of the certificate.

Fourth rule- “Call the manufacturer.”

If you carefully study the instructions for the drug, you can easily find the manufacturer’s details, including the telephone number of the so-called “hotline”. Usually, calls to the hotline are free, and telephone numbers begin with “800”, by calling which you can, in particular, clarify whether the drug you are interested in is supplied to a given pharmacy or a given pharmacy chain.

If the manufacturer’s phone number is not included in the instructions, then the product is counterfeit and the drug itself is most likely also of dubious origin. The manufacturer is simply obliged to indicate his details, which should include a telephone number where you can obtain any information of interest on the drug described in the instructions.

Fifth rule– “Choose your pharmacy carefully.”

As a rule, large pharmacy chains or state-run pharmacies have more stringent requirements; moreover, they work more closely with drug manufacturers, and they are quite zealous in monitoring to ensure that there are as few counterfeit products as possible. In small pharmacy kiosks located in some underground passages, shops, etc. The risk of running into a fake is much higher.