Reporting and Data
McCoy D, Pitsillidis A, Jordan G, et al. PharmaLeaks: understanding the business of online pharmaceutical affiliate programs. In: Security’12 Proceedings of the 21st USENIX conference on Security symposium. Pages 1-1; USENIX Assn Berkeley, CA 2012.
Abstract: Online sales of counterfeit or unauthorized products drive a robust underground advertising industry that includes email spam, "black hat" search engine optimization, forum abuse and so on. Virtually everyone has encountered enticements to purchase drugs, prescription-free, from an online "Canadian Pharmacy." However, even though such sites are clearly economically motivated, the shape of the underlying…
[...]Nayyar GM., Breman JG, et al. Poor-quality antimalarial drugs in southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Lancet Infect Dis. 2012 Jun; 12:6: 488-496.
Abstract Poor-quality antimalarial drugs lead to drug resistance and inadequate treatment, which pose an urgent threat to vulnerable populations and jeopardize progress and investments in combating malaria. Emergence of artemisinin resistance or tolerance in Plasmodium falciparum on the Thailand—Cambodia border makes protection of the effectiveness of the drug supply imperative. We reviewed published and unpublished…
[...]Pillai DR., Lau R, Khairnar K, et al. Artemether resistance in vitro is linked to mutations in PfATP6 that also interact with mutations in PfMDR1 in travellers returning with Plasmodium falciparum infections. Malar J. 2012, 11:131.
Abstract Background Monitoring resistance phenotypes for Plasmodium falciparum, using in vitro growth assays, and relating findings to parasite genotype has proved particularly challenging for the study of resistance to artemisinins. Methods Plasmodium falciparum isolates cultured from 28 returning travellers diagnosed with malaria were assessed for sensitivity to artemisinin, artemether, dihydroartemisinin and artesunate and findings related…
[...]Orizio G, Merla A, Schulz PJ, Gelatti U. Quality of Online Pharmacies and Websites Selling Prescription Drugs: a Systematic Review. J Med Internet Res. 2011 Sep 30;13(3):e74.
Abstract BACKGROUND: Online pharmacies are companies that sell pharmaceutical preparations, including prescription-only drugs, on the Internet. Very little is known about this phenomenon because many online pharmacies operate from remote countries, where legal bases and business practices are largely inaccessible to international research. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to perform an up-to-date and…
[...]Hosseini SA, Darbooy Sh, Tehrani Banihashemi SA, Naseri SM, Dinarvand R. Counterfeit medicines: report of a cross-sectional retrospective study in Iran. Public Health. 2011 Mar; 125(3):165-71.
OBJECTIVES: To gain insight into the pharmaceutical grey market in Iran by reviewing inspection files of the Special Inspectorate Unit, Deputy Ministry for Food and Drugs, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, and to define the counterfeit pharmaceutical pattern in Iran. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional retrospective study. METHODS: In total, 382 inspection files of pharmaceutical counterfeit…
[...]Veronin M. Packaging and Labeling of Pharmaceutical Products Obtained from the Internet. J Med Internet Res. 2011 Feb 15;13(1):e22.
Abstract BACKGROUND: For patients, the prescription container label may be the only source of instructions on how to take their medicines. In the United States, the legal requirements for a prescription label are set by federal law and state statutes. The container should be comparable to that which manufacturers use to package drug products and…
[...]Law E, Youmans SL. Combating Counterfeit Medications: the California perspective. J. Pharm. Pract. 2011 Feb; 24(1):114-21
The production and distribution of counterfeit medications has become a significant global public health issue and though not as rampant in the United States as in other parts of the world, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has seen a 10-fold increase in the number of cases investigated. The purpose of this study was to…
[...]Kuzma J. Web Vulnerability Study of Online Pharmacy Sites. Inform Health Soc Care. 2011 Jan;36(1):20-34.
Abstract Consumers are increasingly using online pharmacies, but these sites may not provide an adequate level of security with the consumers' personal data. There is a gap in this research addressing the problems of security vulnerabilities in this industry. The objective is to identify the level of web application security vulnerabilities in online pharmacies and…
[...]Gavaza P, Shepherd MD*, Shcherbakova N, Khoza S. The state of health economics and pharmacoeconomics research in Russia: a systematic review. Journal of Pharmaceutical Health Services Research. 2010 Sept; 1(3):113-21.
Abstract.
Objectives To investigate the state of health economic research in Russia available in the English language by describing the number and characteristics of the articles, and assessing the quality of these articles.
Methods The study assessed the state of health economics and pharmacoeconomics research in Russia. We conducted a literature search to identify health economics articles pertaining to Russia. Each article in the final sample was scored by two reviewers independently using the data-collection form designed for the study.
Key findings In total, 16 studies investigating a wide variety of diseases were included in the study. These articles were published in 15 different journals all based outside of Russia between 1994 and 2009. On average, each article was written by seven authors. Most first authors had medical/clinical training and resided in the USA (n = 8) at the time of publication of the study. Based on a scale of 1–10, with 10 indicating the highest quality, the mean quality score for all studies was 8.09 (SD = 1.29) and 25% of the articles were of fair quality (score 5–7). The quality of articles was statistically significantly related (P < 0.05) to the primary health intervention (pharmaceuticals > non-pharmaceuticals) and primary training of the first author (medical > non-medical).
Conclusions The conduct of health economics and pharmacoeconomics research in Russia in the English language is limited and, on average, the published articles were of good quality. However, about one-quarter of published articles were of fair quality. More health economics research in English is warranted in Russia.
[...]Kubic TT.* Beer Cooler Biologics! J Biolaw Bus. 2007;10(4):28-32.
Every day, law enforcement officers throughout the United States are engaged in court authorized searches of persons, vehicles, homes and businesses. On occasion, during these searches, officers are surprised at what they uncover. For in some of the most unlikely places, their searches have disclosed the most advanced medicines – biologics, pharmaceuticals products critical to…
[...]