Accra, July 22, GNA - The Food and Drugs Board (FDB), on Wednesday said that the coartem tablets on the market "are mere dummy tablets with no anti-malaria activity and hence of no benefit to patients". A statement signed by Dr Stephen K. Opuni, Chief Executive Officer of the FDB, released to GNA said confirmatory tests conducted on the fake products by its Quality Control Laboratory showed that the coartem tablet did not contain Artemether and lumefantrine, the main active ingredients of the original genuine Coartem.

The confirmatory tests were a follow-up to the press conference by the FDB earlier this month in Kumasi, where it warned the public about the circulation of fake Coartem Tablets.

The statement reiterated the FDB's call on pharmacies, licensed chemical stores and healthcare facilities to pull out the fake drugs from their shelves and dispensaries.

It asked healthcare professionals to assist patients and consumers to distinguish the genuine Coartem from the fake ones. The statement also urged the general public to visit its website; www.fdbghana.gov.gh, for pictorial presentations of the fake product and the genuine brand. It assured that all was being done to bring the perpetrators to face the full sanctions of the law. 22 July 09