The problems posed by the presence of different drugs in same or similar brand names have once again come to the fore with the Monthly Index of Medical Specialties (MIMS) highlighting alarming details about the existence of hundreds of such brands in the country. The sale of different drugs under same or similar brand names is resulting in wrong dispensation and consumption of medicines. The MIMS has pointed out that their study on the brands of just 300 manufacturers in India has shown the presence of more than 20 similar brand names beginning with just one alphabet "A" (Adiflox/Adilox, Adlin/Adliv, Alzol/Alzot etc.) alone.

The MIMS goes deep into the reasons for the abundance of such brand names and feels that the presence of over 17,000 pharmaceutical producers churning out more than 40,000 brands of just 450 or so basic molecules, there is bound to be shortage of unique, distinct brand names. Secondly, producers are keen to use short, easily remembered brand names that give some indication of the ingredient. Alzol was so named because "Al" and "zol" can be identified with albendazole while Alzot is supposed to remind the prescriber of alprazolam. Commercial companies are apparently not concerned with the havoc on healthcare caused by such branding, it has noted.

Under the laws of the land, unlike western countries, drug regulators in India do not have a role in the determination, use and registration of brand names. Drugs Controller General, India (DCGI) is charged with the task of approving new medicines under their generic (chemical) names while state level Food and Drug Administrations issue manufacturing licences. None of them is supposed to keep an updated record of brand names used by various companies. In any event, in a federal setup a central authority is needed to monitor the registration of trade names since one state level authority can not have jurisdiction over another state, it has observed.

There is no central or state law specific to the use or registration of brand names of medicines. Like other consumer items (telephones, cars, air conditioners), brand names of medicines can be registered with the Trade Mark Registry. The over-burdened Registrar takes years to approve or reject a trade name application. Its data bank is not updated for years.

The bigger problem is that it is not compulsory to register trade names of any item in India be it a pen or a pill. In effect it means that if brand name AZ is not registered with the Trade Mark Registry, any number of manufacturers can use it for any number of products. Manufacturers voluntarily register trade names of their products so that others are prevented from using the goodwill and benefit from brand loyalty.

Even when a brand name is registered, it is applicable to one particular class of items. The result: the trade name Lona, even if registered by one company for low sodium salt can be used by another manufacturer for clonazepam since these two items fall under different class of products Lona, a brand of antiepilepsy drug clonazepam marketed by Triton Healthcare Private Limited, Chennai. Lona is also the brand name of low sodium salt marketed by Dabur and meant for hypertensives.