By Chukwudi Nwauba :
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has alerted Nigerians of a falsified antibiotic medication, Augmentin 625mg tablets, that is currently in circulation within the country. the agency, in a statement on Monday, said the falsified antibiotic has batch number 562626, a manufacturing date of April 2021 and an expiry date of April 2024.
It added that the medication has a NAFDAC registration number of 04-1928 but failed to meet labelling requirements. “No inscription ‘manufactured by’ is written on the label, only the address. Manufacturing and Expiry dates do not meet the acceptable format.
No MAS scratch number for verification. The logo ‘gsk’ is not properly positioned as on the original,” the agency said. The Food and Drug agency noted that the aforementioned shows that the product is falsified and counterfeited. NAFDACadded that it has notified all its branches across the country to carry out surveillance and mop up the falsified Augmentin tablets.
“Please note that the genuine Augmentin 625mg has legible product labeling information including date markings – expiration and manufactured dates, batch number, and NAFDAC registration number,” the statement reads.
“NAFDAC’s advice to wholesalers, distributors, and pharmacies is that medicines should be obtained from authorized/licensed suppliers, increased vigilance is hereby encouraged within the supply chain to avoid infiltration of the falsified product.
The products’ authenticity, physical condition, and labels should be carefully checked. “NAFDAC implores healthcare providers to ensure vigilance to prevent the administration of falsified products on unsuspecting patients.
Members of the public in possession of the above suspected counterfeit product are advised to discontinue sale or use and submit stock to the nearest NAFDAC office.
“Healthcare providers and the public should notify the nearest NAFDAC office of any information concerning the distribution, sale, and use of the falsified version of the Augmentin product.”
