Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 3, 2026
05:59
High-Throughput Small Molecule Drug Screening For Age-Related Sleep Disorders Using Drosophila melanogaster
Published on: October 20, 2023
Substandard medicines in resource-poor settings: a problem that can no longer be ignored
J-M Caudron1, N Ford, M Henkens
1Médecins Sans Frontières, Geneva, Switzerland, and AEDES Fondation, Brussels, Belgium. jean_michelcaudron@hotmail.com
Tropical Medicine & International Health : TM & IH
|July 18, 2008
Summary
Substandard medicines in developing nations pose significant health risks due to poor quality and inadequate regulation. Addressing this requires stronger international standards, improved regulatory oversight, and collaborative efforts from governments and donors to ensure medicine quality and patient safety.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Pharmaceutical Sciences
- International Health
Background:
- Substandard medicines, including those with incorrect ingredient concentrations, contamination, or poor stability, are a critical global health issue.
- Weak regulatory oversight in developing countries and differing standards for domestic versus export drugs contribute to the problem.
Purpose of the Study:
- To highlight the multifaceted problem of substandard medicines circulating in developing countries.
- To discuss the causes and consequences of substandard medicines.
- To evaluate current initiatives and propose further actions to combat this issue.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature and reports on substandard medicines.
- Analysis of regulatory challenges in developing nations.
- Examination of international quality standards and pre-qualification programs.
Main Results:
- Substandard medicines present diverse quality defects, impacting patient safety and treatment efficacy.
- Regulatory disparities and under-resourced agencies exacerbate the circulation of poor-quality drugs.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) pre-qualification program is a key initiative, but insufficient on its own.
Conclusions:
- Enhanced international cooperation and stricter quality mandates in procurement are essential.
- Governments must improve domestic regulatory capacity for medicine quality assurance.
- A multi-pronged approach involving donors, purchasers, and governments is necessary to ensure access to safe and effective medicines.
Related Concept Videos
01:19Sedatives and Hypnotics Drugs: Benzodiazepines
Benzodiazepines have both sedative and hypnotic properties. They include compounds such as diazepam (Valium) and alprazolam (Xanax). Structurally, their cores are similar, consisting of the fusion of a benzene ring and a diazepine ring, but they share a common mechanism of action in the central nervous system (CNS).
Benzodiazepines work by enhancing the effects of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA. They bind to the GABAA receptor, increasing its affinity for GABA, which opens chloride...
Benzodiazepines work by enhancing the effects of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA. They bind to the GABAA receptor, increasing its affinity for GABA, which opens chloride...
01:14CNS Depressants: Barbiturates and Benzodiazepines
CNS depressants include drugs from the category of barbiturates and benzodiazepines. They are valuable medications for managing anxiety disorders and insomnia. Barbiturates, once used to induce and maintain sleep, have been replaced mainly by benzodiazepines due to barbiturate's toxicity, tolerance, and overdose risks. They interact with GABAA receptors, leading to sedation at low doses and potentially coma and death at higher doses. Phenobarbital, a long-acting barbiturate, possesses...
01:02Prescription, Nonprescription and Orphan Drugs
Prescription drugs require a prescription from a medical practitioner and can only be obtained from a pharmacy. They have many applications, including treating pain, anxiety, and hypertension.
The misuse and addiction to prescription drugs is a growing problem that can affect people of all age groups, specifically teenagers. This can happen when prescription medications are used in ways not intended by the prescriber, such as taking someone else's prescription or using medication for...
The misuse and addiction to prescription drugs is a growing problem that can affect people of all age groups, specifically teenagers. This can happen when prescription medications are used in ways not intended by the prescriber, such as taking someone else's prescription or using medication for...
01:20Sedatives and Hypnotics Drugs: Barbiturates
Sedatives and hypnotics encompass a drug class that acts on the central nervous system (CNS) to alleviate anxiety, promote relaxation and induce sleep.These drugs function by amplifying the actions of the neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), resulting in reduced neuronal activity. Barbiturates, a subset of sedatives and hypnotics first synthesized in the late 1800s, are categorized into ultra-short, short, intermediate, and long-acting groups based on their duration of effect. A key...
01:19Management of Insomnia
The sleep cycle, an integral part of human health, consists of several stages with distinct characteristics and functions. It begins with a transition from wakefulness to sleep, known as the light sleep phase, followed by the restorative deep sleep phase, essential for physical recovery and growth. The cycle concludes with the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) phase, characterized by high brain activity and vivid dreaming. Insomnia, a prevalent sleep disorder, involves difficulty falling asleep, staying...
01:29Anxiolytic Drugs: Benzodiazepines and Buspirone
Benzodiazepines are a class of anxiolytic drugs known for their rapid efficacy and high therapeutic-to-lethal dose ratio, but with a potential risk of drug dependence. These drugs are lipophilic, allowing for rapid absorption after oral administration, eventually reaching the central nervous system (CNS). Once in the CNS, benzodiazepines bind to the allosteric site of the GABAA receptor. This binding enhances the inhibitory effects of the neurotransmitter GABA. By doing so, they prevent...