Shadow Medication
Regulatory-approved drugs are well documented with patient and professional information and scientific research. They have a brand name and are managed, promoted, and distributed by a company. They are available in pharmacies and drugstores and can be ordered from wholesalers or directly from the company. In addition to these official drugs, there is another group of drugs which we call “shadow drugs”. These are medicines without regulatory approval that do not appear in the official lists of approved medicines. Below are some examples:
- A timolol gel used to treat a hemangioma.
- Migraine medication containing ergot alkaloids.
- Combined analgesics with propyphenazone.
- Spasmo-canulase imitates for digestive disorders.
- Vitamin preparations for the treatment of cystic fibrosis.
- Riboflavin capsules for the prevention of migraine.
These are drugs and active ingredients that are not or no longer commercially available, experimental and off-label therapies and products that are only available abroad. They are prepared, for example, in pharmacies as extemporaneous preparations or imported from abroad. They fulfill an important function for the treatment of complaints for which no registered drugs are available (see also under extemporaneous preparations). Their disadvantages include the fact that there is often insufficient or easily accessible information for professionals and patients. There is also a lack of standardization with respect to manufacturing, leading to many variations. You can find numerous monographs on “shadow drugs” here. The illegally manufactured foreign medicines ordered via the Internet, for example, can also be counted among this group. They are not sold through the official distribution channels such as pharmacies and drugstores, but are procured by customers. This includes, for example, potency medications such as the phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors, for example sildenafil and tadalafil. In the case of these drugs, there is a lack of regulatory and medical control, and the product quality is unclear. For example, one does not know whether the active ingredient is actually contained in the drug or whether it is contaminated. Finally, DIY homemade medicines can also be counted as shadow medicines.
