2. Analytical techniques

The above points underline the importance of detecting and characterizing falsified medicines, in order to assess the public health risks involved. The efficacy, safety and quality of medicines must therefore be assured. A large number of analytical techniques are available to drug analysis laboratories. They are all likely to provide information that can reveal the falsification of a sample, and their performance must be in line with the challenges of testing.

This chapter describes the techniques most commonly used in this field. They are classified by family and scientific complexity, including techniques performed in the laboratory or in the field. These analyses may first be carried out on the sample packaging, before being applied to the drug itself. They provide several levels of information on the quality of the drug and, when compared with a reference sample,...