Street 'Viagra' danger

COUNTERFEIT packs of Viagra, currently being sold on the black market, have been found to contain arthritis medication which can have serious and sometimes lethal, side effects.

Doctors were made aware of the problem when a woman found what she thought were packets of Viagra in a cemetery.

She took the tablets to a local chemist and it was found the boxes contained arthritis medication.

Viagra can only be obtained legally on prescription but is much sought after on the black market. A box of four, costing pounds 40 on prescription, can be sold for upwards of pounds 60 illegally.

The tablets, found in the City Cemetery in west Belfast, were brought to chemist Terry Maguire.

He said: "All drugs which are not prescribed present a danger. You should never buy drugs without medical supervision.

If you buy on the street what you get may not be the right thing."

The arthritis drug found in the Viagra packs is only available on prescription and can have serious side effects if taken in the wrong doses.

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