A year after British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) exited Nigeria, the market has been inundated with fake and unregistered asthma inhalers, leaving many asthmatic patients in distress due to the scarcity of genuine medication.
One such patient, Rose Daniel, a 28-year-old marketer, shared her ordeal of struggling with the side effects of anti-asthmatic tablets before being prescribed the Seretide Diskus inhaler, which brought her much-needed relief without the unwanted side effects. However, following GSK’s departure, the scarcity of these inhalers has reignited her fears.
In a bid to avoid the debilitating side effects of alternative treatments, Daniel scoured pharmacies across Nigeria, eventually securing a few packs of the inhalers to last her until the situation stabilizes. She emphasized the importance of purchasing from registered pharmacies to ensure the authenticity of the drugs.
The influx of counterfeit inhalers has become a serious concern, as many asthmatic patients rely on these life-saving devices. With the current situation, there is growing anxiety over the safety and efficacy of the available inhalers in the market.
