Avoid self-medication and protect yourself against counterfeiting

PE is a medical condition that can be treated, but self-medication should be avoided because it does not contribute to the correct diagnosis of the underlying etiology and bears the risk to take the wrong treatment.

Obtaining information about a medical condition is very important but you must select a reliable source. Internet website of scientific associations or supported by them can provide useful and reliable information about medical conditions. Anyway, only a doctor can identify the causes (whether it is a primary or a secondary PE) select and prescribe the most appropriate treatments. So, a doctor’s consultation is fundamental and should be considered mandatory. Also, please notice that many available treatments are prescription medicines only and so, be aware of the website that sell those treatment without asking for the prescription, since they  may be illegitimate online pharmacies that sell counterfeit medications.

Taking genuine medication is important, first of all for your health and wellbeing and also for your safety, since fake medicines have been found to contain very dangerous substances. Because of these facts, you should always buy the prescribed products from a reputable pharmacist whom you know and trust or from an authorised and certified online Pharmacy (be aware that online pharmacies are legitimated and so, certified and safe, only in some countries).

Internet is the biggest and the most unregulated market in the World where besides licensed online pharmacies (note: selling prescription drug online isn’t legal in all countries) there are also many unlicensed pharmacy websites to conceal their fake drugs amongst legal medicines. In over 50% of cases, medicines purchased over the Internet from illegal sites that conceal their physical address have been found to be counterfeit, while a report prepared by the European Alliance to Access for safe Medicines (EAASM) found that 62% of medicines bought online were either substandard or counterfeit and quite often contain not declared substances which have the potential to harm your health.

Latest estimates suggest that global sales of counterfeit medicines are worth more than $75 billion, having doubled in just five years between 2005 and 2010. Numerous studies have also reported large numbers of websites supplying prescription only drugs without a prescription and people buying internet drugs despite being aware of the dangers.

"Counterfeit medicines are part of the broader phenomenon of substandard pharmaceuticals. The difference is that they are deliberately and fraudulently mislabelled with respect to identity and/or source. Counterfeiting can apply to both branded and generic products and counterfeit medicines may include products with the correct ingredients but fake packaging, with the wrong ingredients, without active ingredients or with insufficient active ingredients". (Definition by the World Health Organization, WHO)

"Substandard medicines are products whose composition and ingredients do not meet the correct scientific specifications and which are consequently ineffective and often dangerous to the patient. Substandard products may occur as a result of negligence, human error, insufficient human and financial resources or counterfeiting".  (Definition by the World Health Organization, WHO)

What risks are involved with taking counterfeit drugs? An individual who receives a counterfeit drug may be at risk for a number of dangerous health consequences. Patients may experience unexpected side effects, allergic reactions, or a worsening of their medical condition. A number of counterfeit products do not contain any active ingredients, and instead contain inert substances, which do not provide the patient any treatment benefit. Counterfeit drugs may also contain incorrect ingredients, improper dosages of the correct ingredients, or they may contain hazardous ingredients

The safest way to obtain genuine prescription only medicines is to get a prescription from a doctor and to fill it at licensed street pharmacy, while if you want to buy online you must do it from a legitimate online pharmacy. Look for a list of approved online pharmacies from your local Authorities (please note that online pharmacy are not legitimate in many countries) and refrain to buy from online website that don’t provide pharmacy registration number, physical address and phone number as fake online pharmacies won’t have this information.

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Advisory Board

Prof. Jacques Buvat

Prof. Jacques Buvat Director of the Centre d’Etude et de Traitement de ...
Advisory Board

Dr. Ian Eardley

Dr. Ian Eardley Consultant urologist in St James’s Hospital in Lee ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Dimitrios Hatzichristou

Prof. Dimitrios Hatzichristou Professor of Urology and Director of the Unit for ...
Advisory Board

Prof. François Giuliano

Prof. François Giuliano Urologist, Department of Physical Medicine and Reh ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Alessandra Graziottin

Prof. Alessandra Graziottin Currently Director of the Centre of Gynecology and ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Emmanuele Jannini

Prof. Emmanuele Jannini Professor of Endocrinology and Sexology at Univers ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Chris McMahon

Prof. Chris McMahon He is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Hea ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Vincenzo Mirone

Prof. Vincenzo Mirone Professor of Urology, Director of the Postgraduate ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Ignacio Moncada

Prof. Ignacio Moncada Head of Urology at La Zarzuela Hospital, Madrid an ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Francesco Montorsi

Prof. Francesco Montorsi Professor of Urology at the University Vita Salute ...
Advisory Board

Prof. Hartmut Porst

Prof. Hartmut Porst Associate Professor of Urology at the University o ...
Advisory Board