Antimicrobial Resistance and Substandard and Falsified Medicines: The Case of HIV/AIDS

Reply to Suthar et al

“…In closing, we concur with Suthar et al [6] that as transition to country procurement of ARVs increases, it is imperative that country-specific guidelines be developed to monitor the quality of medications being procured. These guidelines should cover both initial and on-going procurement and logistical requirements to ensure that a steady supply of high-quality ARVs is available for individuals on therapy.…”

Trends in counterfeit drugs and pharmaceuticals before and during COVID-19 pandemic

“…Long ago a phenomenon of resistance of malaria parasite species to antimalarial drugs was observed in Camerron that was linked to falsified chloroquine tablets [9] , [38] . In recent years, HIV drug resistance is being observed in developing countries mainly due to poor quality of the antivirals used [39] . Moreover, risk factors such as blood pressure, serum glucose, or serum lipids that are not being adequately controlled by using ineffective counterfeit drugs, could also lead to major health risks [22] .…”

Blind-Watermarking—Proof-of-Concept of a Novel Approach to Ensure Batch Traceability for 3D Printed Tablets

“…Worldwide, an estimated 10% of medicines on the market are falsified [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]. In developing countries, the percentage of falsified and substandard drugs is higher, at about 10-30% [3,[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. Particularly at risk of counterfeiting are those drugs that are expensive or promise high sales.…”

“…Particularly at risk of counterfeiting are those drugs that are expensive or promise high sales. In developing countries, these are often antibiotics, viral drugs, or malaria preparations [14][15][16][17]. In rich countries, falsified medicines of new and expensive so-called "lifestyle pharmaceuticals" are most common, for example, hormones, steroids, and antihistamines [18].…”