How to know when a medicine is “pirate”

This Tuesday, March 29, the Federal Commission for the Protection against Health Risks (Cofepris) warned about the identification of nine counterfeit batches of the drug Keytruda, which raised suspicions among the population about what should be taken into account in order not to fall into this type of deception.

Faced with this, Cofepris has some recommendations so that citizens do not encourage, through action or ignorance, the purchase of “pirate medicines”, which meet the objective of preventing their health from being put at risk by consuming drugs of poor quality or altered.

1. Observe that the packaging has the printed health record issued by Cofepris.

2. Check that you have the batch number printed and matched on the outer and inner packaging -in case the medicine has such a design-.

3. The packaging of the drug must have a valid and printed expiration date.

4. In addition, it must not be altered or in poor condition.

5. Finally, the commission asks the population to purchase them only in formal and fixed establishments, avoiding buying them in tianguis, markets on wheels or street stalls.

Likewise, if you find a pirate medicine or that raises doubts in the person who bought it, you can file your complaint by phone 01 800 033 50 50.

You can also do it through the Cofepris website or by attending the facilities of the country's capital, located at: Oklahoma No.14. Colony Naples. Benito Juarez Mayor's Office. Mexico City. CHP. 03810.

In addition to what is proposed by the Mexican agency, the World Health Organization (WHO) also has some points to consider when purchasing health-related products:

1. Buy only in authorized places, as far as possible, avoid the consumption of drugs purchased through unknown websites or markets.

2. Do not self-medicate or acquire biologics that are not prescribed by a health professional.

3. Compare prices in different establishments, since “if the drug is much cheaper, it is probably fake”.

4. Examine the condition of the packaging, this includes all printed legends since misspellings have been detected in pirate medicines.

5. Check that the medicine looks as expected and there are no changes in color, signs of degradation or foreign odors.

6. Finally, if the drug was purchased and swallowed, promptly go to the doctor to receive the necessary care in order to avoid damage to health.

Finally, the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) released a statement on which drugs are most often counterfeited around the world, so that the authorities health care take it into account.

He first pointed to products or drugs related to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, such as face coverings, disinfectants, vaccines and virus detection kits.

While in second place were drugs for the treatment of diseases such as cancer, malaria, HIV, among other similar pathologies. In addition, products for weight loss or treatment of erectile dysfunction.

Finally, there are medical devices such as surgical instruments, radiotherapy devices, contact lenses, condoms or syringes.

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