Karachi: Six brands of auto disable syringes collected by drug inspectors from different districts of Sindh have been declared substandard by the Drug Testing Laboratory Sindh Karachi after their reuse prevention feature failed during testing, official laboratory reports show.
According to test reports issued on May 20, 2026, the samples complied with several physical and technical parameters, including appearance, graduated capacity, scale printing, barrel dimensions, piston fit, leakage, lubricant and dead space. However, all six samples failed the key self destructive performance, auto disability and reuse prevention feature test.
The reports state that when standard force was applied on the plunger to move its extreme end towards the nozzle and the plunger was pulled back, “it should not come without breaking.” In all six cases, the result was recorded as “Not Complies.”
The syringes declared substandard include Medi Aqua 5ml Auto Disable Syringe, Zindagi 3ml Auto Disable Syringe, Shifa 3ml Auto Destruct Syringe, Unilock 3ml Auto Disable Syringe, Shifa 5ml Auto Destruct Syringe and Bio Safe Auto Disable Syringe.
The samples were received by the Drug Testing Laboratory Sindh Karachi from provincial drug inspectors in Khairpur, Hyderabad, Karachi Korangi and Sukkur between May 4 and May 5, 2026. The reports were signed by Syed Adnan Rizvi, Provincial Government Analyst and Director, Drug Testing Laboratory Sindh Karachi.
The Medi Aqua 5ml syringe sample, manufactured by Frontier Pharmaceutical (Pvt) Ltd, Peshawar, was received from the Provincial Inspector of Drugs Khairpur and declared substandard under Medical Devices Rules, 2017.
The Zindagi 3ml syringe sample, manufactured by Al Badar Manufacturing (Pvt) Ltd, Gadoon Amazai, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, was received from the Provincial Inspector of Drugs Hyderabad and also declared substandard after failing the reuse prevention test.
Two samples of Shifa Auto Destruct Syringes, 3ml and 5ml, labelled as manufactured by Changzhou Tongda Medical Appliances Co Ltd, China, with SY’AH Impex Karachi as sole agent, were received from Karachi Korangi and declared substandard.
The Unilock 3ml syringe sample, manufactured by Unisa (Pvt) Ltd, Nowshera, was received from the Provincial Inspector of Drugs Sukkur, while the Bio Safe Auto Disable Syringe sample, manufactured by Injection Systems (Pvt) Ltd, Gadoon Amazai, was received from Khairpur. Both were declared substandard for the same reason.
The laboratory reports have been forwarded to the relevant provincial drug inspectors and the Secretary Quality Control Board Sindh Karachi for further action.
Health experts said failure of the auto disable mechanism in syringes is a serious public health concern because the very purpose of such syringes is to prevent reuse after one injection. They said reused syringes can become a major source of blood borne infections, including HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C, particularly in settings where infection prevention and injection safety practices are weak.
Officials said the findings would require regulatory action under the relevant laws and rules, including market verification, stock inspection and further proceedings by the competent authorities.