Beware of Fake Anti-Malaria Drugs in Circulation - NAFDAC Warns Nigerians
By: Olufemi Orunsola
The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control has raised an alert over the flooding of the country's pharmaceutical industry with counterfeit Combiart Dispersible Tablet 20/120mg.
OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News reports that NAFDAC issued the stern health advisory via a post on its official X handle @ NafdacAgency on Thursday in Public alert No. 043/2024 titled: Alert on the sale of counterfeit COMBIART (Artemether +Lumenfantrine 20/120 mg) didpersible tablet in Nigeria.
According to the regulatory agency, the product is manufactured by Strides Arcolab Limited, based in India.
“This product was discovered in the FCT and Rivers State during surveillance activities conducted by officers of the Post Marketing Surveillance Directorate of NAFDAC.
“The laboratory report of the analysis carried out on the product revealed that it contained zero active pharmaceutical ingredients. The product was also observed to have two different date markings. The NAFDAC database of registered products confirmed that the product licence has expired, and the NAFDAC registration number on it is incorrect and does not belong to the product.
“The Artemether and Lumefantrine combination belongs to a group of medicines known as antimalarials. It treats malaria, a red blood cell infection transmitted by mosquito bites. However, this medicine is not used to treat severe or complicated malaria,” NAFDAC stated.
The agency warned that counterfeit medicines pose significant risks to health as they do not meet regulatory standards, meaning their safety, quality, and efficacy cannot be assured.
It added that counterfeit medicines often fail to effectively treat conditions, leading to severe health consequences, including death.
In a related development, the agency equally announced later on Thursday that it has seized N300 Million worth of fake medicines in raids conducted in Lagos, revealing that NAFDAC's investigation team has uncovered a trove of counterfeit medicines during a raid at Tyre Village, Trade Fair Complex, Lagos state.
Concluding, the agency announced that the prime suspect has been invited for questioning while further investigations are underway.
The body therefore warns members of the public to beware of buying the listed counterfeit drugs.
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