Abstract
The profile of tablets containing an active pharmacological ingredient can be obtained using different sets of properties, including physical and chemical aspects. The first measurements carried out on tablets are the physical characteristics also called post-tabletting batch (post-TB) characteristics. These data may be valuable to assist in the detection of pharmaceutical product forgery and may also be used in a forensic intelligence perspective when inserted into databases. This work is focused on the physical characteristics of Cialis® and Viagra® tablets seized by the Brazilian Federal Police in the Rio Grande do Sul state. Using the F-test (ANOVA), all samples of counterfeit Viagra® (n = 28) and Cialis® (n = 40) were well distinguished from authentic samples by the following post-TB characteristics: length (major and minor), thickness, and mass. Using the exploratory statistical technique of Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA), tablets with similar physical profiles were grouped. This result may indicate a common illicit production. We observed the validity of using post-TB properties to generate - in a fast and reliable manner and with no sample preparation - a technological profile that joins itself to the other analytical methods assisting in routine forensic detection of counterfeit Viagra® and Cialis®.
Highlights
Studies to obtain chemical or physical profiles of illicit drugs intended to materially prove the existence of a crime or to provide the strategic and operational intel-For samples of synthetic drugs in tablet pharmaceutical dosage form, it is generally assumed that seizures with corresponding characteristics come from the same production batch, while tablets that exhibit differingR
The main stages of production of tablets may be listed as follows: (A) synthesis of the active pharmacological ingredient, (B) addition of excipients that enable the production of pharmaceutical dosage form – this pharmaceutical complex in powder form is defined in a preliminary study called pre-tabletting batch (Weyermann et al, 2008), and (C) compression of the mixture powder into tablets – a set of tablets produced by compression in a given machine provides properties that define a study called post-tabletting batch (Marquis et al, 2008)
The post-tabletting batch (post-TB) characteristics – among them weight, thickness, and length – are the first measurements made in tablets and create a physical profile for them
Summary
Studies to obtain chemical or physical profiles of illicit drugs intended to materially prove the existence of a crime or to provide the strategic and operational intel-For samples of synthetic drugs in tablet pharmaceutical dosage form, it is generally assumed that seizures with corresponding characteristics come from the same production batch, while tablets that exhibit differingR. For samples of synthetic drugs in tablet pharmaceutical dosage form, it is generally assumed that seizures with corresponding characteristics come from the same production batch, while tablets that exhibit differing The post-TB characteristics – among them weight, thickness, and length – are the first measurements made in tablets and create a physical profile for them.
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