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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by 1980Monroe on June 28, 2004, at 21:55:03
ive been hearing some posts that brand naems adn generic are diffrent in quality, and or effects. I dont know how that could differ becasue it should be the same chemcial structure, not oh thats the "off brand chemical strucuture" there all the same.
Lets get some investigation going
Posted by Fred23 on June 28, 2004, at 22:28:42
In reply to is there truly a diffrence between Brand Generic, posted by 1980Monroe on June 28, 2004, at 21:55:03
> ive been hearing some posts that brand naems adn generic are diffrent in quality, and or effects. I dont know how that could differ becasue it should be the same chemcial structure, not oh thats the "off brand chemical strucuture" there all the same.
>
> Lets get some investigation goingThat's what I've been trying to do. See my post at:
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040627/msgs/361145.html
Posted by King Vultan on June 29, 2004, at 11:54:24
In reply to is there truly a diffrence between Brand Generic, posted by 1980Monroe on June 28, 2004, at 21:55:03
It's not just the drug but the inert ingredients that can have a bearing on the performance of the drug. My pdoc says that when Tofranil (imipramine) went generic years ago, some patients would suddenly report they weren't doing as well. When asked if the pills looked the same, and with the reply "No, they don't", it was easy enough with imipramine to check the blood plasma level of the drug. When they did so with these patients, it was obvious that the blood plasma level of the imipramine had fallen out of the therapeutic range.
The reason for this was that the generic drug was being produced by a different company using different excipients, or inert ingredients, which affect the absorbtion characteristics of the drug. This was happening even though the drug itself was identical and assayed to the correct number of mg per tablet. Recently, this phenomenon has occurred with the MAOI Nardil, where Pfizer has made substantial changes to the inert ingredients in the pills and also moved the manufacturing operation to France. This is resulting in many people not being able to absorb the drug as well as they used to, with an increase in depression and/or anxiety, sometimes accompanied with withdrawal type symptoms. Increases in dosage have been necessary in many cases to compensate for the formulation change, but unfortunately, these are proving futile for some individuals.
Todd
Posted by SLS on June 29, 2004, at 12:30:03
In reply to is there truly a diffrence between Brand Generic, posted by 1980Monroe on June 28, 2004, at 21:55:03
> ive been hearing some posts that brand naems adn generic are diffrent in quality, and or effects. I dont know how that could differ becasue it should be the same chemcial structure, not oh thats the "off brand chemical strucuture" there all the same.
Todd's (King Vultan) synopsis is accurate. My doctor has seen some people relapse into depression upon switching from Remeron to the generic mirtazepine.
- Scott
Posted by 2ndXround on July 2, 2004, at 4:05:52
In reply to is there truly a diffrence between Brand Generic, posted by 1980Monroe on June 28, 2004, at 21:55:03
Hi
The 'King' said it very well. The absorbtion rate (bioequivalence) can be changed due to the inert ingredients.
Also, generics, when tested, do not have the exact bioequivalence of brand names. They have to come within a certain range of the brand names. I believe there is a +-15%-20% range of acceptance.
So in effect, a brand name could actually be 15-20% stronger or 15-20% weaker then the name brand.
I work in Cardiac Care and we are very careful about making sure we do not substitute generics for certain meds....like digoxyn. Exact dosage and timing is critical to the lives of many patients taking heart meds.
Posted by Sebastian on July 2, 2004, at 19:08:08
In reply to is there truly a diffrence between Brand Generic, posted by 1980Monroe on June 28, 2004, at 21:55:03
Usualy is a little different. They usualy are not identical.
This is the end of the thread.
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