Half of men buying the impotence drug Viagra online are getting counterfeit tablets, study findings suggest.

Dr Nic Wilson from the University of London tested Internet-sold samples using a new technique that accurately spots the ingredients of tablets.

She told the British Pharmaceutical Conference in Manchester how many authentic-looking tablets were fakes.

Drug giant Pfizer, which manufactures Viagra, is conducting its own investigations into the fake copies.

Counterfeits

Dr Wilson used a technique called near infrared (NIR) microscopy which provided a detailed picture of what was in each tablet.

This technology is similar to the older method called NIR spectroscopy but gives much more information.

There is a high probability that the tablets have no clinical effect Researcher Dr Nic Wilson

Dr Wilson explained: “A counterfeit tablet may contain lactose as an ingredient in the bulk tablet, whereas the authentic tablet does not.

“NIR spectroscopy could only show that the tablet is different, while NIR microscopy could actually identify the likely presence of lactose.”

Many of the samples tested contained less of the active ingredient sildenafil than authentic Viagra.

They also contained different components from the bona fide Viagra.

Dr Wilson said: “We don’t know that ‘wrong’ components will be harmful, but the user runs the risk of poor quality and possible toxicity, not to mention the fact that there is a high probability that the tablets have no clinical effect.”

She said NIR microscopy should help regulatory authorities monitor the movement of counterfeit tablets.

Crackdown

It is the job of the Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Authority to investigate any reports it receives of websites under its jurisdiction which appear to be in breach of regulations regarding advertising, or sale and supply of medicines.

In 2003, counterfeit Viagra with an estimated value in excess of 2.35m was seized.

Pfizer said it welcomed the research and was also analysing the samples.

A spokesman said: “We do not recommend that anyone obtains any prescription-only medicine online without seeing a doctor.

“Without knowing what ingredient is in a counterfeit medicine a patient could be putting their health at risk.

“It is important for men to see their doctor if they have erectile dysfunction as it may be an indicator of a more serious condition.

“Viagra may not be suitable for all men and there are also some men for whom sexual activity is not considered safe or for whom an oral treatment may not be appropriate.”

Originaly from Source

A zoo in north Wales is helping a world-wide project to protect endangered seahorses.

Throughout the year Anglesey Sea Zoo is raising funds for Project Seahorse.

It is also selling a range of crafts made especially for the zoo by fishermen in the Philippines who would otherwise be making a living catching the creatures.

Many species are under threat as they are being fished in huge numbers, mainly for their value in traditional Chinese medicine, where they are highly prized as treatment for asthma, lethargy and impotence.

People who would otherwise have made their living from fishing for seahorses make the fair trade crafts in the Philippines Alison Lea-Wilson

At least 20 million are taken from the sea each year to meet this demand.

Many hundreds of thousands more are turned into souvenirs for tourists or captured live for the international aquarium trade.

Their coastal habitats are also being destroyed by holiday developments and pollution.

Now to promote the project a fundraising night is being held at the zoo on Tuesday.

The zoo’s Alison Lea-Wilson said: “There will be talks on seahorses, activities for children including face painting, quizzes and competitions, and the chance to buy specially commissioned crafts.

The fundraising night is being held on Tuesday

“People who would otherwise have made their living from fishing for seahorses make the fair trade crafts in the Philippines.

“They have been created especially for Anglesey Sea Zoo and all profits generated from their sale will be given back to the charity.

“Items include beach mats, coasters, wallets and jewellery, all made from natural materials.

“Ticket prices include a visit to the Sea Zoo with plenty of staff on hand to answer questions, a plate of nibbles and a glass of wine or juice.”

Originaly from Source

“It has been presented in a very populist way,” he said.

“If we had infinite resources and we weren’t suffering, if my patients didn’t come to me and say ‘did you know they have just cancelled my operation again’ I would probably think this was not such a bad thing,” he said.

But there were real questions over how much you would actually gain by such screening, people needed more information about it, and in the end the people most likely to take up the voluntary checks were the “worried well”, he said.

It just shows a lack any real understanding of healthcare

One example was the PSA test for prostate cancer.

“The vast majority of people who have a positive test do not have prostate cancer,” he said.

“The test also has a high ‘false negative’ rate, which means it doesn’t pick up all the ones with cancer either.”

Also the progression of prostate cancer was very slow and treatment could lead to impotence and incontinence. A very old man was likely to die of something else first, so it begged the question would this be best.

“Patricia Hewitt must be, in medical terms, almost like a child armed with a gun, making pronouncements. She should come and see what happens at local level,” he said.

“It just shows a lack any real understanding of healthcare.”

Instead of ‘choice’ forced on us, my patients say they’d prefer good local services

In the meantime, GPs were still routinely checking people, whether it was “opportunistically” such as taking blood pressure when prescribing the contraceptive pill, if people requested a check and it was non-invasive, or whether the surgery was holding a specific health programme.

At the same time smear tests for women were routine, as was breast screening for women over 50.

“Where there is a high need for screening, the high need is currently covered. These resources could be put into something more important.

“Instead of ‘choice’ forced on us, my patients say they’d prefer good local services.”

Unhappy at the treatment his asthmatic wife was getting from their GP, Carl Thomson decided to change the family doctor.

It was a decision which changed the 35-year-old’s life.

As a new patient he was given a health check, part of which was a blood test.

He was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, and all his health worries of the past few years fell into place.

Two years previously he had complained to his then GP he was feeling depressed, exhausted and was having trouble concentrating.

It has really turned my life around, I am back on top of my game again.

It was diagnosed as depression.

“I was off work for six months and having all sorts of pills and potions thrown at me to cure depression,” he said.

After six months he knew the medication was making no difference, so decided to “pick himself up” and return to work, but was still plagued by health worries

“My new GPs are great believers that prevention is better than cure,” he said.

“It has really turned my life around, I am back on top of my game again. I am so much in their debt.”

And because his diabetes was diagnosed fairly early on, he is able to control it through medication and diet, without having to resort to insulin injections.

I have a six-year-old son, and I am going to see him grow up

“They have saved me a great deal of problems and health troubles,” he said.

If left undiagnosed he would have faced an uncertain future, while his condition would have been far more costly to the NHS, he said.

“If I had had a heart attack I would have ‘bed blocked’ for several months, there would have been all sorts of complications and problems.

“It would have been far more expensive for the NHS than it is treating it now.

“These checks will save us the tax payer a lot more money in the long-term and also get people’s health back on track.”

But there are other things far more important.

“I have a six-year-old son, and I am going to see him grow up. If this hadn’t been diagnosed then there would have been a serious risk that I would not have seen him grow up long-term.”

Originaly from Source

While the Muslim Council of Britain has been working on the ground in Baghdad to contact those holding British hostage Ken Bigley, more radical Islamists in London have been making their own efforts.

One figure, Yasser al-Sirri who runs the Islamic Observation Centre in London, says he received news over the weekend regarding Mr Bigley.

Mr al-Sirri told the BBC that he sent an email appeal though an intermediary in Iraq last Thursday and then received a number of messages back over the weekend including one indicating that Mr Bigley was alive and that Mr al-Sirri’s appeal would be taken into account when determining the British hostage’s fate.

Let his release be a message to the British people to prove that Islam is a religion of forgiveness Yasser al-Sirri

On Sunday, Mr al-Sirri made appearances on the al-Arabiyah and al-Jazeera TV stations to make further appeals.

“We asked the group in our appeals to release the hostage as a gesture of generosity, particularly after Blair and his government let him down,” he said.

The potential significance of this lies in the content of Mr al-Sirri’s message as well as his background.

‘Political context’

His lengthy original appeal was based on detailed arguments surrounding Islamic law, quoting from the Koran.

But his message also had a political context: “let his release be a clear message from you to the British people, and a call for them to realize the impotence and criminal nature of their government,” Mr al-Sirri said.

He argues that Tony Blair has let Ken Bigley down by not securing his release and therefore by showing mercy to Mr Bigley, Mr al-Zarqawi could embarrass Mr Blair.

He also argues that Mr Bigley is merely an ordinary worker and that it would have more of powerful impact to release him.

“Show mercy to the weak. … Let his release be a message to the British people to prove that Islam is a religion of forgiveness,” read the appeal.

A similar appeal has also been made by another Islamist in London, Saudi dissident Dr Muhammad al-Masari who runs the Party for Islamic Renewal.

He told the BBC that though contact has been difficult and “haphazard”, he has been able to talk over the phone to militants in Iraq.

‘Radical links’

Of course, it is impossible to know whether the messages Mr al-Sirri received back are valid since the contact is indirect.

But he is known as a figure with extensive links and credibility amongst more radical Islamists.

His Islamic Observation Centre monitors arrests and deportation of Islamists around the world.

Mr al-Sirri himself was sentenced to death in absentia in an Egyptian court in 1994 for his role in an assassination attempt on the Egyptian prime minister and he successfully fought off an attempt by the US to extradite him for links to terrorists.

A British judge also cleared him of conspiracy in the 2001 murder of Afghan General Ahmad Shah Masood in Afghanistan.

His background makes it more plausible that he could be able to get in contact with Zarqawi’s group and, if he did, that his appeals would have more impact, although ultimately it is hard to be sure how significant the impact of these less mainstream Islamist voices will end up being in Ken Bigley’s fate.

Originaly from Source

The anti-impotence drug Viagra will be available on the High Street without a prescription from 14 February.

Boots the chemist is introducing a trial scheme at three of its branches in Manchester.

Men aged between 30 and 65 will be able to buy four pills for 50 after a consultation with the pharmacist.

But Dr Jeff Hackett, chairman of the British Society for Sexual Medicine, said many men were entitled to the drug on the NHS, without paying.

“We have some regulations at the moment that allow a large number of patients to get the drug free on the National Health Service,” he said.

“One of the problems for pharmacists will be to identify these patients who actually shouldn’t be paying who are legally entitled to get it free and that’s quite a challenge.”

Hour-long consultation

Men seeking the drug from the pharmacist will have to undergo some basic medical tests, and anyone wanting a repeat prescription would have to consult a doctor.

Boots pharmacist James Longdon said the men would have an hour-long consultation, including blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol checks.

He added that they would also be made aware that men with certain medical conditions could obtain the drug free of charge with a prescription from their GP.

Boots claims that only 10% of the three million men who suffer from impotence are being treated.

It said offering Viagra without a prescription could help to improve those figures.

The chemist also claimed the move would be a good way to monitor men’s health, as erectile dysfunction was often a marker for a more serious underlying medical condition.

Originaly from Source

Top European pharmaceutical firms are using unscrupulous marketing practices to promote their products, a consumer report says.

The Consumers International lobby group accused drugmakers of using the methods to get doctors to prescribe products and persuade consumers they need them.

It said there was a “shocking” lack of publicity about where the $60bn (33bn) annual marketing spend went.

Drug firms say that they act within strict guidelines.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) told the BBC News website that for UK-based firms there was “a stringent and transparent code of practice that goes beyond the requirements of UK law and the industry regulator”.

Sponsorships

Consumers International said it had analysed the selling techniques of many leading companies, including Bayer, GlaxoSmithKline and Johnson & Johnson.

The current regulatory framework is clearly insufficient to prevent systemic violations of marketing regulations Consumers International

Richard Lloyd, the group’s director general, said: “The pharmaceutical industry spends nearly twice as much on marketing as it does on research and development, yet consumers know next to nothing about where this money is going.”

He called for a revision of marketing regulations to achieve “more transparency from drug companies”.

In most Western markets direct advertising to consumers is banned.

But Mr Lloyd said there were other methods drug companies were using to influence opinion.

These include the sponsoring of patient lobby groups, funding disease awareness campaigns and use of hospitality packages for medical experts.

As producers of life-saving medicines it is important that we ensure doctors know full details ABPI

The report cites sponsorships by such firms as Eli Lilly and Pfizer. The latter, the maker of Viagra, sponsored a campaign by the Impotence Association which sported the Pfizer logo.

The report said only one of the firms studied, Orion Pharma, provided specific marketing budget information.

It also pointed to the “large numbers of serious, recent and repeated breaches of marketing codes”.

This showed the “current regulatory framework is clearly insufficient to prevent systemic violations of marketing regulations”.

However, the ABPI said the number of complaints raised showed the system, which had been strengthened this year, was working.

It said complaints from drug companies about fellow firms’ activities showed the self-regulation was effective.

But it also said it was vital for doctors to know about products.

“There is no point having innovative new medicines if they remain unused,” an association spokesman said.

Originaly from Source

With the death toll rising rapidly in the battle between the Liberian Government and rebels for control of Monrovia, the African press is unimpressed with the pace of efforts to bring an end to the conflict.

“To the continent’s discredit, Africa has reacted to the crisis with the customary speed of a snail,” South Africa’s Business Day comments.

“Instead of finding solutions, our leaders are bogged down in issues of process.

“In the Liberia case, Africa should be exhorting the leaders of west Africa to use their influences and leverage to prevent further violence by controlling their borders and not allowing the flow of weapons into the country.”

Impotence

Senegal’s Le Soleil agrees. “It is as if the international community, but also the African community, were admitting their impotence and waiting for chaos in Liberia before they act,” it laments.

Taylor wants to stay to the bitter end Fraternite Matin, Ivory Coast

It might appear difficult to interfere in a country’s internal affairs, the paper reasons, “but between that and remaining passive observers of this tragedy, there are steps which could and should have been taken.”

But Nigeria’s Guardian is unhappy about that country’s continued involvement in Liberian affairs.

“Two steps taken recently indicate unequivocally that Nigeria is once again spearheading a potentially costly initiative supposedly to bring peace to war-ravaged Liberia,” it writes.

“The earlier intervention from 1990 to 1997,” it reminds readers, “was a fiasco that resulted in huge losses in human and material terms.

“Nigeria should explore other ways in conjunction with Ecowas and other interested parties to bring peace to Liberia. Nigeria’s human and material sacrifices are enough already”, the paper says.

Taylor’s refuge

The Guardian is incensed by President Olusegun Obasanjo’s offer of asylum in Nigeria to beleaguered Liberian President Charles Taylor.

“Nigeria already has enough international problems to grapple with,” the paper says. “These should not be compounded by providing a roof for Taylor.”

Fraternite Matin in the Ivory Coast is also no fan of President Taylor.

What Africa needs is not endless aid but respect Monitor, Uganda

“Taylor wants to stay to the bitter end. In spite of the war which is raging in Monrovia. In spite of the hospitality offered him by Obasanjo,” it says.

“The old warrior is clinging on, leaving behind him a field of ruins,” the paper says, adding that the consequences for the Liberian economy and people matter little to him: President Taylor wants to “cling on to power at any cost”.

Cri du coeur

Further afield, Uganda’s Monitor is not inclined to dwell on African shortcomings.

“What Africa needs is not endless aid, but respect,” the paper says, “and an end to US- and European-sponsored conflicts that have ruined our various economies.”

The conflicts in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Angola have “all been sponsored and nurtured by these so-called democrats”.

“The oil struggles in Sudan and in the Horn of Africa are all foreign-sponsored. We want all these conflicts ended.”

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. (más…)

The Commission has ruled it should sell its Windows system without a media player “bundled” into it, and share information on its operating system with competitors.

It does now sell a Windows-minus-Media-Player version of its software.

But it also sells a Windows-with-Media-Player - for the same price.

It also says it is happy to share information, but only if the competitor pays a hefty “licence” fee.

Separately in the US, the District Court in Central California ordered Microsoft to pay $8.96m for infringing on a 1994 patent held by a Guatemalan inventor.

It is an insignificant sum for Microsoft but it is one of 35 patent infringement cases, including one worth more than $500m, that the company is now fighting.

Pfizer allegations

The worst performer on the index was the drugs company Pfizer (down 4.6% on the fortnight), which has been faced with allegations that its best-selling Viagra impotence drug may cause blindness.

However, it has won a court case brought by the world’s biggest maker of generics, or copycat, drugs, Teva Pharmaceutical.

It claimed Pfizer couldn’t sell cut-price versions of its own epilepsy drug, Neurontin, to compete with Teva’s version.

The judge said it could.

This could have wide implications for the generics industry. It makes it a lot less attractive for a generics manufacturer to make and market a generic version of a patented drug, if it then has to face a cut-price version put out by the original manufacturer.

Oiling the wheels

The party may be over for generics drug makers, but oil firms are still seeing rising prices. A 6% rise in the oil price in the last fortnight had a mixed impact on the big oil companies.

Rising oil prices have buoyed some oil stocks

Exxon was up 4.1%% and BP was down 0.5%.

The market seems uncertain about the future direction of prices, especially as Opec told the EU on Thursday it is prepared to meet rising demand with increased production.

BP’s share price recovered somewhat on Thursday as it announced it may find some 25% more natural gas than expected in a Caspian Sea field in which it is investing $4.2bn.

Offsetting that, the British oil company is part of the Sincor partnership, including Total of France, Statoil of Norway and Exxon, which has been told it owes about a billion dollars in back royalties for increasing oil output above agreed levels.

The oil ministry says it has been “swindled”. The oil companies say they were doing nothing wrong. The government said the state would be happy to buy any of them out of the partnership.

It probably does not have too many offers on its dance card.

Originaly from Source

All it takes is a credit card in one hand, a mouse in the other and a few choice words on an internet search engine.

With those simple steps, you will be ready to take your pick from thousands of powerful medicines.

Treatments for acne, cancer, impotence and heart disease. Drugs that are generally only available with a prescription.

However, the advent of the internet and its hundreds if not thousands of e-pharmacies means that is no longer always the case.

While the internet is home to many legitimate pharmacies, it is also home to a growing number of pharmacies that operate illegally selling drugs to anyone willing to pay for them.

Some of the drugs on offer Abolon, an anabolic steroid Clozapine, an antipsychotic Evista for osteoporosis Hyzaar for high blood pressure Prozac for depression Ritalin for hyperactivity Tamoxifen for breast cancer Viagra for impotence

A quick internet search unearths countless sites offering unlimited supplies of drugs without a prescription.

They ask only for credit card details and for customers to wait “between 10 and 21 days”.

Some even provide customers with an A to Z of the hundreds of medicines on offer.

These range from Abolon, an anabolic steroid, to Zyprexa for schizophrenia.

A growing market

A survey by the UK’s National Audit Office earlier this year suggested as many as 600,000 Britons have bought prescription medicines over the internet.

In the United States, an estimated one million people buy their medication in this way.

There are no accurate figures on how many people buy these medicines over the net without a prescription.

But with more sites appearing every week, it would be fair to suspect that it is a growing market.

Doctors are becoming increasingly concerned.

“There are potentially very serious risks of getting medication over the internet,” says Dr George Rae of the British Medical Association.

“All drugs have potential side-effects. There is also serious problems if you take medication on top of anything else.

“Buying medicines over the internet also means there is no assurance about quality. It is inherently dangerous.”

This week, the mother of a 24-year-old man who killed himself after buying drugs online urged the British government to tackle the problem.

At one point, Liam Brackell was receiving 300 anti-depressant tablets in the post every day. By the time of his death, he had tried 23 different types of prescription drugs.

International crackdown

Governments and international agencies are trying to shut down rogue e-pharmacies. However, they appear to be fighting a losing battle.

In the UK, anyone found guilty of selling such drugs can face an unlimited fine and up to two years in prison.

You do not need a prescription to by (sic) our products e-pharmacy

To date, there have been just three successful prosecutions against people running UK-based e-pharmacies, which did not operate within the law.

The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has managed to have seven websites shut down over the past few years.

However, it receives between 10 and 15 reports of unlawful operators every month and websites start up as quickly as they close.

Customs and Excise officials can seize controlled medicines that are sent through the post without proper documentation.

They can also seize medicines that are not described accurately.

“If we do find them, we seize them,” says a spokeswoman. “But they are among thousands of packages coming through everyday.”

The problem is an international one and governments have started to work together to try to tackle it.

“Other countries are also concerned about the risk to public health,” says a spokesman from the UK’s Department of Health.

“We work closely with other regulatory authorities in the EU and the US.”

Industry concern

The pharmaceutical industry says it is concerned but powerless.

“These are prescription medicines and they are prescription medicines for a reason,” says a spokeswoman for the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.

People should not be taking these medicines without medical advice ABPI spokeswoman

“People should not be taking these medicines without medical advice,” she says.

“We are working with the regulatory authorities and we are happy to do anything we can to help. But really there isn’t very much we can do.”

The fact remains, the internet and e-pharmacies are to a large extent a law onto themselves.

Websites that operate in countries with tight rules can be shut down.

However, others are more than happy to base themselves elsewhere, in countries without such laws.

One website informs potential customers that they do not need a prescription because they ship from countries where they are not required under the law.

The logistics suggest that even a concerted international effort will ultimately fail.

“This is not just about the UK. It is international. It is worldwide,” says Dr Rae.

“Bringing this under control may be difficult if not impossible”

He suggests that educating patients could be one way of tackling the issue.

“We need to get the message across that this is potentially very dangerous. We need to educate patients.

“The implications of buying medicines over the internet are potentially profound.”

Originaly from Source

Pictorial health warnings on cigarette packets are more likely to encourage smokers to quit, a Canadian study says.

The University of Waterloo-led research also found large and regularly updated text warnings were more likely to be noticed then smaller ones.

Researchers looked at different approaches taken in four countries - Canada, the US, the UK and Australia - analysing the impact on 15,000 smokers.

The UK currently uses text warnings, but picture alerts start this year.

Cigarette packets in Canada carry graphic warnings

However, when the study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, started, the UK was only using smaller warnings.

This allowed researchers to monitor the impact of changing the nature of warnings.

Canada already uses graphic images, such as text saying smoking causes impotence accompanied by a drooping cigarette, on packets.

In Australia, large text warnings - just below the internationally recommended standards of 30% coverage of the cigarette packet - were introduced eight years before the study was carried out.

Small text warnings have been used in the US since 1984.

When asked if they noticed the warnings, 60% of Canadian smokers said they often did, compared to 52% of Australian smokers and 30% of US ones.

In the UK, awareness stood at 44% before the change in 2003, and 82% after.

Smokers

Some two and a half years after implementation of the larger text, awareness still stood at 67%, suggesting large text warnings were more noticeable than graphic warnings.

However, nearly 15% of Canadian smokers said they had been deterred from having a cigarette, more than the other three countries, including the UK, even once the larger warnings had been introduced.

Warnings like these are being brought in across the EU

Researcher David Hammond said: “This study suggests that more prominent health warnings are associated with greater levels of awareness and perceived effectiveness among smokers.”

Deborah Arnott, of the anti-smoking charity Ash, said: “This study provides evidence to support the UK government’s proposal to add picture warnings on tobacco products.

“We urge the government to press ahead with the strongest possible images on to cigarette packs as soon as possible.”

But Simon Clark, director of the smokers’ lobby group Forest, said the warnings were “disproportionate”.

“It is all about stigmatising smokers. Why don’t we put warnings on cars about the risk of crashing?”

Originaly from Source