Illegal Botox, Does It Matter?
This month (April 2015), the FDA issued an alert to health care practitioners and the public that a counterfeit version of BOTOX was found in the US and may have been sold to doctor’s offices and medical clinics nationwide. With the alert, the FDA took action against this illegal importation by an unlicensed supplier not authorized to ship or distribute drugs within the United States. The counterfeit products were seized by the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations.
But as buying drugs and prescriptions off the internet becomes more and more common, does FDA approval really matter? The answer is an unequivocal yes! As the FDA alert states: “Medications purchased from foreign or unlicensed sources may be misbranded, adulterated, counterfeit, contaminated, improperly stored and transported, ineffective, and/or unsafe. Medical practices that purchase and administer counterfeit, illegal, and unapproved medications from unlicensed or foreign sources are putting patients’ health at risk, as patients may not be getting proper treatment.”
In other words, buyer beware! The media is full of stories of adulterated drugs made with contaminated products, drugs that require refrigeration—yet arrive after days in transit without any cooling elements. You may receive the wrong drug entirely with a false label. And you have the additional concern that a fraudulent company has your credit card information.
So, how do you know that the Botox you require for cosmetic reasons or for medical purposes (ranging form migraine treatments to overactive bladder issues) is the real thing? Start by getting the product from a practitioner you trust. Esana, for example, is rigorous in making sure all products and medications are FDA approved.
You or your practitioner should only order BOTOX from Allergan or a distributor on Allergan’s authorized list. The authentic FDA-approved BOTOX®/BOTOX® Cosmetic manufactured by Allergan displays the active ingredient, onabotulinumtoxinA, on the outside of the product carton and on the vial. The vial itself has a standard white ring of residue on the bottom.
The FDA alert also informs us that the FDA-approved BOTOX product, ordered through Allergan, is not at risk and is safe and effective for its intended and approved uses. BOTOX can have an amazing impact on reducing frown lines and improving a range of medical conditions—if the BOTOX supply is FDA approved.
Please follow the link below to read the actual FDA alert: http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm443217.htm
