batman
Been around the epilepsy block a few times
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With the help of topix.net, I came across an article, titled ‘Pharmacists may be switching your meds’. I don’t know how long the article will remain online, so hopefully, for those of you who are reading this posting will be able to read the article.
While reading over the article I started to remember a particular topic that was discussed during an epilepsy conference that I had attended several years ago. But I just could not remember a particular word that was used in that topic. So with the help of me taking notes during that epilepsy conference, and copying those notes to my computer, I was able to locate that particular word that I was trying to remember. And that word was, Bioavailability.
The issue with generic medications is known as bioavailability, which is the amount of medication available for your body to absorb. The bioavailability of the medication has to be plus or minus a certain percentage of the bioavailability of the name brand drug. That “certain percentage” was something else I could not remember, but I did know that percentage had been increased by the FDA. So I did some online searching by using the word ‘bioavailability’ and it appears that that certain percentage had been increased to roughly 20%.
Now, for some people with epilepsy, but not everyone with epilepsy, that plus or minus 20% might not be such a big deal. However, for many of the other individuals who have epilepsy, and this does include people who might have their seizures controlled with brand-name antiepileptic medications, if the brand-name medication is switched over to a generic medication, the bioavailability of the medication could vary, and the person’s blood level could very as well, which could result into problems either with toxicity or breakthrough seizures. Would you be willing to take the risk in order to find out if you, your loved one, and/or someone else you know who has epilepsy, might have these problems? I’m not.
The generics can save you money, but the question is... “Where does your pharmacist get their generics?” Let’s say for example, a pharmacist is getting low on one of their generic antiepileptic medications, and company ‘A’ is having a special on their generic antiepileptic medications. Where's your pharmacist most likely going to get their generic antiepileptic medications? Yes, most likely from company ‘A’. Then later on, another company, company ‘C’ comes in and says, “Listen, if you buy this much product from us, we’ll give you and your spouse a free weekend in Hawaii.” Where do you suppose your pharmacist is most likely going to get their generic antiepileptic medications this time? Yeah, company ‘C’. So do you suppose the bioavailability of company ‘A’s’ generic is going to be the same as the bioavailability of company ‘C’s’ generic? Probably not. One potential problem with generics is that pharmacists are probably not consistently buying from the same generic supplier.
One advantage of brand-name drugs is you always know what you are getting. And to get these brand-name drugs, usually there are two lines on the physician’s prescription pad. One says, ‘Dispense As Written’ (DAW), which means the pharmacist has to fill the prescription exactly as the doctor has written it. Then there's another line that they can sign that says, ‘Substitutions Permitted’, which means the pharmacist does not have to give you the name-brand drug. So if you're one of the individuals who needs or wants the brand-name drugs, then you want to make sure the prescription is signed by the physician on ‘Dispense as Written’.
Going back to when I was searching online in order to find out what the results would be when using the word ‘bioavailability’, the links I’ve included below are to a few websites that came up in the search results. And each of those 3 articles include the word and explanation for the word ‘bioequivalence’. I would highly recommend for everyone to read these articles because what is mentioned in them might be very helpful when dealing with generic antiepileptic medications, pharmacists, financial assistance, and or trying to maintain control, or a enough control, for your or someone else’s seizures.
Generic Drugs: They Save Money. But, Are They Effective and Safe?
The Epilepsy Battle in the War Between Brands and Generics
... And just as a heads up, some of the words that are used in this next article, are not clean words.
Brand Name Medications vs. Generic Drugs: The Differences Are Real.
While reading over the article I started to remember a particular topic that was discussed during an epilepsy conference that I had attended several years ago. But I just could not remember a particular word that was used in that topic. So with the help of me taking notes during that epilepsy conference, and copying those notes to my computer, I was able to locate that particular word that I was trying to remember. And that word was, Bioavailability.
The issue with generic medications is known as bioavailability, which is the amount of medication available for your body to absorb. The bioavailability of the medication has to be plus or minus a certain percentage of the bioavailability of the name brand drug. That “certain percentage” was something else I could not remember, but I did know that percentage had been increased by the FDA. So I did some online searching by using the word ‘bioavailability’ and it appears that that certain percentage had been increased to roughly 20%.
Now, for some people with epilepsy, but not everyone with epilepsy, that plus or minus 20% might not be such a big deal. However, for many of the other individuals who have epilepsy, and this does include people who might have their seizures controlled with brand-name antiepileptic medications, if the brand-name medication is switched over to a generic medication, the bioavailability of the medication could vary, and the person’s blood level could very as well, which could result into problems either with toxicity or breakthrough seizures. Would you be willing to take the risk in order to find out if you, your loved one, and/or someone else you know who has epilepsy, might have these problems? I’m not.
The generics can save you money, but the question is... “Where does your pharmacist get their generics?” Let’s say for example, a pharmacist is getting low on one of their generic antiepileptic medications, and company ‘A’ is having a special on their generic antiepileptic medications. Where's your pharmacist most likely going to get their generic antiepileptic medications? Yes, most likely from company ‘A’. Then later on, another company, company ‘C’ comes in and says, “Listen, if you buy this much product from us, we’ll give you and your spouse a free weekend in Hawaii.” Where do you suppose your pharmacist is most likely going to get their generic antiepileptic medications this time? Yeah, company ‘C’. So do you suppose the bioavailability of company ‘A’s’ generic is going to be the same as the bioavailability of company ‘C’s’ generic? Probably not. One potential problem with generics is that pharmacists are probably not consistently buying from the same generic supplier.
One advantage of brand-name drugs is you always know what you are getting. And to get these brand-name drugs, usually there are two lines on the physician’s prescription pad. One says, ‘Dispense As Written’ (DAW), which means the pharmacist has to fill the prescription exactly as the doctor has written it. Then there's another line that they can sign that says, ‘Substitutions Permitted’, which means the pharmacist does not have to give you the name-brand drug. So if you're one of the individuals who needs or wants the brand-name drugs, then you want to make sure the prescription is signed by the physician on ‘Dispense as Written’.
Going back to when I was searching online in order to find out what the results would be when using the word ‘bioavailability’, the links I’ve included below are to a few websites that came up in the search results. And each of those 3 articles include the word and explanation for the word ‘bioequivalence’. I would highly recommend for everyone to read these articles because what is mentioned in them might be very helpful when dealing with generic antiepileptic medications, pharmacists, financial assistance, and or trying to maintain control, or a enough control, for your or someone else’s seizures.
Generic Drugs: They Save Money. But, Are They Effective and Safe?
The Epilepsy Battle in the War Between Brands and Generics
... And just as a heads up, some of the words that are used in this next article, are not clean words.
Brand Name Medications vs. Generic Drugs: The Differences Are Real.