Analytical techniques in the fight against falsified medicines

Drug falsification is a crime, because it can endanger patients' lives. Beyond the problems of intellectual property misappropriation and economic losses, the fight against drug falsification is a major public health issue. With the globalization of trade and the development of online commerce, this phenomenon is on the increase. The products affected by falsification are comfort drugs (erectile dysfunction, weight loss, etc.), as well as life-saving drugs (anti-cancer drugs, vaccines, antibiotics, anti-malarial drugs, etc.).

The fight against the falsification of medicines involves both police investigations and legal proceedings, based in particular on chemical analysis of the incriminated sample. Faced with the increasing number and sophistication of falsified products, analytical laboratories need a strategy that draws on a wide range of analytical techniques. The methods available to laboratories range from simple observation of the sample and its packaging, through spectrometric and chromatographic techniques, to more sophisticated imaging techniques. The choice and combination of these methods must provide answers to the following questions: is the product adulterated, and is it dangerous to the patient's health?

After presenting the problem, this article describes the main techniques available to laboratories for the analysis of chemical drugs. A methodology is proposed, taking into account the speed of analysis, the cost of the equipment, the destruction of the sample and the possibility of carrying out analyses outside the laboratory.

A table of acronyms is given at the end of the article.