Evaluation of Information Contained in Drug Advertisement and Promotion Materials in Nigeria

Adibe, Maxwell Ogochukwu; Igboeli, NU; Ubaka, CM; Udeogaranya, PO; Onwudiwe, NP; Ita, OO

doi:10.4314/tjpr.v14i3.25

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Only 6.6% of the brochures meet all the “WHO’s Ethical Criteria for Medicinal Drug Promotion” and 40% of them include less than half of these criteria. These results are consistent with those found in similar studies conducted in Nepal and Nigeria, showing that none of the brochures evaluated contain all the information required by the WHO [ 26 – 28 ]. A study done in Iraq, have found that the information that is provided in medical brochures is biased and mainly persuasive since it is mainly focusing on the positive aspect of drug therapy [ 21 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Pharmaceutical brochures in Lebanon: do they meet WHO recommendations?

et al. 2022

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Background Drug promoting brochures can influence physicians prescription patterns. The validity of the info presented in these brochures is of major importance. World Health Organization (WHO) issued criteria to guarantee validity, equity and ethical presentation of data in medical brochures. This study aims to evaluate the quality and the validity of information presented in the pharmaceutical brochures distributed among family physicians in Lebanon. Methods Pharmaceutical brochures were randomly collected at the family medicine center in Hôtel Dieu de France hospital in Beirut - Lebanon. These brochures were evaluated in reference to the WHO ethical criteria for medicinal drug promotion and on guidelines for quality assurance of the graphs, references, texts and illustrations. Results Among the 60 brochures collected, only 4 fulfilled all the WHO ethical criteria, and 24 presented less than half the required criteria. Information concerning the drug safety are the least mentioned. Only 11.8% of the presented graphs are based on studies of high methodological level. Half of the brochures presented necessary information to identify studies references which are not always retrievable. Texts present mainly brand names instead of generic names and emphasize on information reflecting the drug efficacy. Conclusion The pharmaceutical brochures in this study presented incomplete or invalid information. Prescribing physicians should be aware of the claims found in the brochures distributed by pharmaceutical companies and should be familiar with the principles of the evidence-based medicine to be able to critically appraise the validity of the reference studies and avoid the pitfalls in graphs reading.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Pharmaceutical brochures in Lebanon: do they meet WHO recommendations?

et al. 2022

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“…Antimicrobials, analgesics and nutritional supplements were also the most common therapeutic classes promoted in DPLs in the earlier Nigerian study. 27 This is not surprising as infections and cardiovascular diseases are highly prevalent in Nigeria. 32,[41][42][43] Nutritional supplements/ vitamins are also widely used in Nigeria especially together with antimicrobials and antimalarials.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whilst there have been studies in Nigeria discussing the promotional activities of pharmaceutical companies, 3 there is currently a paucity of information regarding the contents of DPLs in Nigeria. A study conducted by Adibe et al 27 in 2015 did not strictly analyze the information provided using the components of the WHO Ethical Criteria for Medicinal Drug Promotion. This is important because Nigeria has an appreciable pharmaceutical sector, which is currently poorly regulated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adherence to WHO Criteria on Drug Promotion Literature: An Exploratory Study From a Tertiary Healthcare Facility in South-West Nigeria

et al. 2022

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Introduction: In many low and middle-income countries (LMIC), drug promotional literature (DPL) remains one of the main sources of drug information for physicians. Studies conducted in many LMICs showed poor compliance to the WHO guidelines for ethical drug promotion especially in the area of information about excipients, adverse drug reactions, drug-drug interactions and contra-indications. These inadequacies in the information provided may mislead the prescriber with potential adverse consequences among patients using the medicines. Nigeria has a big pharmaceutical sector which is poorly regulated and we hypothesize that such unethical drug promotional practices may exist. This study therefore set out to assess compliance to the WHO ethical drug promotion (using DPL) at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, South-West Nigeria. Methodology: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in several specialist clinics of EKSUTH, Ado-Ekiti. Printed DPLs (brochures and leaflets) were collected from these clinics, collated using a pre-designed data collection form and analyzed using the WHO ethical criteria for medicinal drug promotion. Results:Two hundred seventy-five DPLs were screened A total of out of which 234 DPLs were selected after screening to after removal of duplications. Only 5 (2.1%) DPLs met all the WHO criteria. DPLs promoting antibiotics, cardiovascular drugs, and vitamins/nutritional supplements were in the majority (22.2%, 17.1%, and 11.5% respectively. Most of the DPLs had the generic (223; 95.3%) and brand (234; 100%) names, active ingredients (209; 89.3%), excipients (149; 63.7%), and indications (232; 99.1%). Information about adverse drug reactions (76; 32.5%), contra-indications (73; 31.2%), and drug interactions (46; 19.7%) was less represented. Only 59 (25.2%) DPLs had references. Fixed-dose combination drugs made up 34.6% of drugs being promoted. Conclusion:The DPLs assessed in this study had low adherence to WHO ethical drug promotion criteria especially those related to adverse drug reaction, drug interactions, and contra-indications.

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“…Few scholars have worked on various aspects of drugs advertising in Nigeria. For instance, Adibe et al (2015) evaluated the physical characteristics and the completeness of information in drug package leaflets/inserts and drug promotional brochures in Nigeria. The findings revealed that advertising materials used in promoting drugs in Nigeria have incomplete information and the physical characteristics of the materials are not adequate.…”

Section: Euphemism In Herbal Adsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cure for weak manhood: A persuasive euphemism strategies in selected Nigerian herbal medicines advertisements

Onipede

2023

Braz. J. of Sci.

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The study examined herbal medicines advertising discourse as unique terms of depicting weak manhood euphemistically in order not to sound vulgar. Twelve advertisements (ads) served as the data of investigation. The data were taken from Facebook advertisements (both texts and images) and analyzed from the purviews of Barthesian denotative and connotative annotations, Halliday's transitivity concepts, and critical discourse analysis. This study aims to examine how weak manhood is portrayed, the ideology behind its portrayal, and the persuasive techniques used in the ads. The study revealed concealments in form of sexual satisfaction (e.g. next match, lasting gbola, bigga gbola, better something, leg shaking) and power/activeness (e.g. big carrot, strongest bamboo, Manpower, 45 mins, inner chamber, excellence in the other room, power to do more, and extra time/large). The study suggested that further researches to analyze from a multimodal perspective on how different visual and linguistic choices deployed in the herbal cure for weak manhood ads contribute to the euphemistic and persuasive import of taboo-related advertising. Again, however acceptable euphemistic expressions may be in certain context; they are considered too explicit, pinged with negative connotation and therefore create war among readers.

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Evaluation of Information Contained in Drug Advertisement and Promotion Materials in Nigeria

Cited by 4 publications

References 6 publications

Pharmaceutical brochures in Lebanon: do they meet WHO recommendations?

Pharmaceutical brochures in Lebanon: do they meet WHO recommendations?

Adherence to WHO Criteria on Drug Promotion Literature: An Exploratory Study From a Tertiary Healthcare Facility in South-West Nigeria

Cure for weak manhood: A persuasive euphemism strategies in selected Nigerian herbal medicines advertisements

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