Field Study on the Assessment of Antimalarial Drug Quality Using Minilab Kit in India

Title:Field Study on the Assessment of Antimalarial Drug Quality Using Minilab Kit in India

Volume: 5

Author(s): Saba Noor, Supriya Sharma and Taruna Arora*

Affiliation:

• RBMCH, Indian Council of Medical Research-Head Quarter’s, New Delhi-110029, India

Keywords: Counterfeit medicines, Substandard drugs, Thin-layer chromatography, Minilab kit, Anti-malarial agents, Antimalarial drug.

Abstract:

Background: A lack of proper anti-malarial medication use can lead to drug resistance, failed therapy, and even death. It is unclear how widespread the use of fake anti-malarial medications is in India. Better malaria treatment and the execution of regulatory initiatives to improve anti-malarial drug quality necessitate regional research into the quality of available anti-malarial pharmaceuticals. This study aimed to look into the quality of anti-malarial drugs in regions of India where malaria is common. Conclusions about the prevalence of substandard anti-malarial medications in Indian communities can be drawn from the findings.

Methods: Samples of anti-malarial pills were bought from stores in five different Indian areas. One hundred and fifty anti-malarial drug samples were gathered. Using a GPHF minilab lab kit, the quality of the following samples was determined: chloroquine (n=50), artemether lumefantrine (n=50), artesunate sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (n=14), and primaquine (n=31).

Results: This research confirmed that 98% of the tablets disintegrated properly in a minilab disintegration test. As a result, when compared to both the full set of standards and 80% of the samples, 99% of the samples passed the preliminary qualitative TLC test. Only 4% of samples (those with insufficient amounts of the active medicinal component) failed the quantitative HPLC test.

Conclusion: Anti-malarial medicine counterfeiting has been found to be quite uncommon in India compared to other countries. However, further research is needed, such as post-marketing surveillance, to ensure that effective anti-malarials are distributed to the public.

Cite this article as:

Noor Saba, Sharma Supriya and Arora Taruna*, Field Study on the Assessment of Antimalarial Drug Quality Using Minilab Kit in India, New Emirates Medical Journal 2024; 5 : e02506882296927 . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/0102506882296927240628080941