Food, Drug Department warns against fake Daflon tablets

Georgetown: Consumers are being urged to take note of the circulation of a Fake/Counterfeit Brand of Daflon (micronized purified flavonoid fraction) on the local market.

The original (at left) along with a representation of the counterfeited/fake product.

“This product is used to treat patients suffering from chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) – varicose vein and venous circulation disorders (swollen legs, pain, early morning restless legs) and symptoms associated with acute haemorrhage,” Director of the Government Analyst Food and Drug Department GA-FDD, Marlan Cole said.

Cole explained that the Original product is sold in a white box with blue borders and containing sixty 500mg tablets that are further divided on four silver blister packs, each containing 15 tablets.

Contrastingly, he said the counterfeited/fake product is sold in a white box with no border and containing sixty 500mg tablets that are further divided into six, silver with blue blister packs, each containing 10 tablets.

Further the Director of GA-FDD stated that the manufacturers’ address of the original product is in France while that of the counterfeited/fake product manufactured address is Turkey / Ukraine.

“The Official distributors of the Original Product are Massy Distributors Inc. and Ansa McAl Trading Ltd. and Inspectors of the GA-FDD has to date since seized approximately twenty four boxes x 60 tablets x 500mg of the counterfeited/fake from several wholesaler bonds and retail pharmacies in Georgetown and in region number three. Criminal proceeding would be instituted against the importers of the fake/ counterfeited Daflon,” Cole said.

He continued: “ Counterfeited/fake daflon are unable to achieved therapeutic effect for intended use because flavonoid are poorly micronized resulting in particle size greater than 2 µ micro meters resulting in poor stomach absorption. Consumers are asked to return the counterfeited Product to wholesalers and retailers and be refunded, and to report to the GA-FDD on telephone number 222-8859, any proprietor who refuses to cooperate with this mandatory recall exercise.” the Director stated.  

In addition, he said that the Department is calling on importers and distributors to with immediate effect surrender all the Fake/ Counterfeited Daflon associated with this mandatory recall to be destroyed, failure to do same will leave the department with no alternative but to initiate legal proceedings against defaulters.

“The Department will continue to robustly monitor our local market for fake, substandard and counterfeited products in the interest of consumer protection and safety,” he said.