Microbiological Analysis of Pharmaceutical Non Injectable Drugs Produced in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Pharmaceutical drugs are applied and consumed by the patients with weak immune system and for this reason these products must be of good quality and within the required microbiological limit. Present study attempted to determine the microbiological quality of pharmaceutical non injectable oral and topical drugs as well as their antibacterial activity. A total of sixty samples were studied from different categories of medicine including syrup, tablet & capsule and ointments. Microbiological analysis was done after serial dilution. Antibacterial activity of the samples was also determined by Kirby-Bauer method. The total viable bacterial count of 9 syrups, 7 tablet & capsules and 13 ointments samples exceeded the microbial limit ˂102cfu/ml or cfu/gm recommended by USP (United States Pharmacopeia) and BP (British Pharmacopeia). Regarding to the presence of specific bacteria, about six, six and three samples from syrup, tablet & capsule and ointment samples were of good quality respectively out of twenty samples each. Some drug prevailed good activity towards few bacteria and no activity at all to some others. As the drugs possess antibacterial activity, the contaminants might represent some other species of the same genera of bacteria having some mechanisms to prohibit such activities towards them. More than 50% of the drugs contain higher bacterial and fungal load rendering the quality at risk and not recommended to use by the patients to whom these products will impart most harm as these patients are already immune compromised.