I always was told by certain doctors to take brand name drugs.
But while I was in the psych Hospital, they only gave me Generics.
Honestly I feel better with the Generics.
From now on I will be using Generic meds, including sticking with risperidone instead of using brand name Risperdal.
I also am saving a ton of money in the process.
I seem to be less agitated on Generic Risperdal compared to the brand name version.
I take geodon, and it is going generic, which makes me glad.
Hereās the deal with genericsā¦ I am a certified pharmacy technician and have been told this by every pharmacist I worked with.
Generics have the exact same active medication as the brand name. The difference is that generics are allowed by the FDA to have 10% more, or 10% less, of that active medication. For example, a 100 mg tablet of brand name Seroquel is required to have exactly 100mg of Quetiapine in it. But a generic 100mg tablet of the same drug is only required to have 90mg of Quetiapine in it, or even up to 110mg.
Thatās why some people notice that certain generic manufacturers are better than others. For instance a lot of people who take Xanax generic say the Greenstone generics are best and thatās true because they contain more of the actual drug.
Ugh. I donāt like the sound of that if itās true. Anyway, I take generic abilify now and (thankfully) dont notice any difference.
Normally I only take the brand names. I think there is no generic for my invega and my lexapro so Iām sort of safe there. Iāve never been told by a doctor to only take brand names, itās been my own pedantic self that has seen me only order the brand names.
However, when I first bought my seroquel I thought I had said I only want the brand name, but I ended up with the generic. Iāve never had the brand name before so I canāt speak on the difference, but I love the generic. I think it has been working. It helps me sleep and I think my recent flare up of āsymptomsā is dying down.
@Sooner88 I didnāt know about the 10% rule. Do they have to advertise the amount on the box or can they say it has the right amount but it really doesnāt?
When I was addicted to codeine I always bought brand name except from one chemist where the generic felt stronger. The generic at my regular chemist was way weaker and I couldnāt get high from it.
Itās not advertised. Theyāre allowed to say it has a certain amount but itās allowed to differ by up to 10 percent.
The good thing is that 10 percent isnāt usually enough to matter either way.
And they do offer Invega and Lexapro in generic, I take generic Invega. Itās called Paliperidone.
I take Abilify and it has not gone generic yet in my country. I will definately take the generic should it become available.
Oh wow! I didnāt know there was generic invega. Itās actually really hard to get in Australia. If you take your prescription to the chemist, they usually have to order it in for you. Chemists donāt keep it stocked. So I always get the brand ordered in.
Although in saying all that, my regular chemist keeps it in stock for me now.
I didnāt know you were in Australia. Some countries may not have the generic available, it all depends on each countryās patent laws.
Are you in Canada? Iām guessing from your avatar hockey team. Iād love to go to Toronto.
From the FDA website:
āFACT: FDA requires generic drugs to have the same quality and performance as brand name drugs.ā
āThe generic drug manufacturer must prove its drug is the same as (bioequivalent) the brand name drug. For example, after the patient takes the generic drug, the amount of drug in the bloodstream is measured. If the levels of the drug in the bloodstream are the same as the levels found when the brand name product is used, the generic drug will work the same.ā
Read the complete information here:
http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/BuyingUsingMedicineSafely/UnderstandingGenericDrugs/ucm167991.htm
Sorry @Moonbeam my brain isnāt really switched on for information at the moment, could you please explain to me what that means?
I interpret it as meaning that the FDA requires that the generic and brand drugs are equivalent in terms of how they work.
Ok, does that still mean they can differ by 10% but they still need to be effective? Iām sorry, Iām really slow on the uptake.
Iām not sure where @Sooner88 got the 10% number from.
There is no mention of that on the FDA website and I would be inclined to believe whatās on the FDA website.
Ok thank you! I might have a look on some Australian websites for some information about generics.
@Moonbeam I found this on the TGA (therapeutic goods Australia, the equivalent of the FDA) website:
Apart from containing the same active ingredient, generic brands also
have to be ābioequivalentā. That is, if you take the same dose of a
generic medicine as an existing medicine, the same amount of active
ingredient is absorbed by your body over the same period of time.
https://www.tga.gov.au/community-qa/generic-prescription-medicines-fact-sheet
Then I guess 6 or 7 pharmacists are wrong. My bad, thought the experts would know.
Did the pharmacies have a chemist examine them? I donāt really know how pharmacies work or if they use there own chemists for quality assurance?
A pharmacist is the same thing as a chemist. In the US we call them pharmacists, they have a doctorate in pharmacology.