Pakistan's medicines watchdog has warned that forged flu shots sold under two well-known brand names are circulating. The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), which licenses medicines, released rapid notices covering Influvac Tetra and Vaxigrip Tetra after suspect packs appeared in the market.
Both Abbott Laboratories and Sanofi Winthrop say the products bearing their labels are not genuine. That confirmation turns a labelling problem into a public-health alert: anyone offered these brands should treat the named lots as unsafe until proven otherwise.
Which lots are involved
Regulators say Vaxigrip Tetra lot Y4B34 never entered the country through legal channels and is forged. Cartons name Sanofi Winthrop in France as the maker. The firm's Pakistani distributor raised the first alarm with officials.
Separately, Influvac Tetra lot P13 turned up in Lahore. Those packs claim Abbott Biologicals in the Netherlands produced them. DRAP published a distinct rapid notice for each brand so pharmacies and clinics can check stock against the listed identifiers.
What clinicians and patients should do
Officials caution that nobody knows whether these shots work or how safe they are, and that patients could face real harm. Prescribers have been told to avoid them. Clinics, wholesalers and chemists should flag suspect stock to the authority without delay.
Anyone who feels unwell after a jab should contact the National Pharmacovigilance Centre (NPC), the unit that tracks medicine side effects. Reporting helps investigators map where fake flu vaccines moved and how many people may have been exposed.
Provinces ordered to seize stock
Provincial health teams have been ordered to disrupt the trade route, find where the fakes came from, and seize the listed lots. Emergency action is meant to keep remaining vials out of private clinics and retail shelves while the source is traced.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- Last month: DRAP cautioned the public about deadly spurious drugs.
- Recent days: Talk grew of scarce flu immunisation stocks nationwide.
- Now: Rapid notices name Influvac Tetra lot P13 and Vaxigrip Tetra lot Y4B34 as forgeries, with the companies agreeing the packs are not theirs.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Pakistan mein do mashhoor flu vaccine brands ke naam se naqli teekay milne ki khabar hai. DRAP ne is par alert jaari kiya hai. Abbott aur Sanofi ne confirm kiya ke ye asal nahi hain. Doctor ya pharmacy se batch number check karwayein; shuba ho to foran report karein.
