Review Pharmaceutical Pollution and Disposal of Expired, Unused, and Unwanted Medicines in the Brazilian Context Letícia de Araújo Almeida Freitas 1 and Gandhi Radis-Baptista 1,2,* 1 Post-Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, Dentistry and Nursing, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, CE 60416-030, Brazil;
[email protected] 2 Laboratory of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Institute for Marine Sciences, Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza, CE 60165-081, Brazil * Correspondence:
[email protected]; Tel.: +55-85-996-886-054 Abstract: The occurrence of pharmaceuticals in the environment is an everyday recognized concern worldwide, and drugs as environmental contaminants have been detected in water and soil systems, posing risks to humans and wildlife. The presence of drugs in wastewater, groundwater, and even drinking water occurs in several countries, including Brazil, where the pharmaceutical market is expanding over the years. The adverse, harmful effects of pharmaceuticals in the environment range from the spreading of antimicrobial resistance and species survival to the interference with reproduction and increased cancer incidence in humans. Therefore, it is demanding to count on proper legislation to prevent these pollutants from entering the distinct environment compartments. In some developed countries, laws, directives, programs, and initiatives regarding drug disposal reach a mature status. In Brazil, federal laws dealing with drug residues’ management are recent, with flaws that might facilitate non-compliance with drug pollution issues. Besides, pharmacies and drugstores are not obligated to collect unneeded household medicines, while particular State laws aim to ordinate Citation: Freitas, L.d.A.A.; the disposal of drug residues regionally.