Advances in rapid drug detection technology

Spurious/Falsely-labeled/Falsified/Counterfeit (SFFC)drugs have become a major threat to public health, especially in rural areas of developing countries.The goal of this review is to provide an overview of rapid detection technologies for counterfeits recently reported, such as Near Infrared Spectroscopy, Near Infrared Chemical Imaging, Raman Spectroscopy, X-Ray Fluorescence, X-RayPowder Diffraction, Ion Mobility Spectrometry, Ion MobilityMass Spectrometry,Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry and visual analytical methods The advantages of each of these detection methods are introduced. Examples of characterization of SFFC drugs using the detection technology mentioned are presented. In addition, new characteristics and trends of SFFC drugs are listed and the solution is discussed.