Counterfeits and imitations of Viagra and Cialistablets: trends and risks to public health - A survey of the analyses carried out at the Dutch National Institute forPublic Health and the Environment in the time period 2000 - 2004

摘要

During the last years de Dutch market has been flooded withfalsifications of Viagra. and Cialis.. Both products are used for thetreatment of erectile dysfunction. This report is about the trend ofthese falsifications during the years 2000 - 2004. The risks of theseproducts to public health are surveyed and also described. The followingconclusions are drawn: There is a trend towards products containing otheractive compounds than sildenafil and tadalafil, the compounds of Viagra. and Cialis.. There is a trend towards the addition of (unknown) activecompounds to herbal products. Falsifications are a risk to publichealth: they are produced without adequate quality control; they misleadthe users concerning manufacturer and composition. The risk to publichealth is much higher if unknown, chemical compounds are added to herbalproducts. The effects and side effects of these compounds are unknown. Besides, herbal products are often considered to be natural and thereforeharmless. In order to detect trends and new risks in the future, anongoing survey of the legal and illegal market by analysing samples isneeded. The trend analysis and risk survey are based on the analyticalresults of about 400 samples. These samples were sent in by governmentalinspectorates for chemical analysis. The samples give an insight intothe developments of the illegal market. However, they may not berepresentative for the market supply.