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Generic vs. Name Brand

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thedungeonkids

Bluelighter
Joined
Nov 19, 2007
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93
Hi Everyone. Relatively new to the boards. Thought I'd drop in for a question or two. I've recently been prescribed Vicodin (5-500) for my CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome), while still having further testing to see if there is an underlying problem. Going to my pharmacy, they gave me generic. although a little disappointed, seemed to work just fine. But when I went for my refill at a different Pharmacy they gave Name Brand Watson vicodin. My two questions are

1. what dictates the Pharmacy's desision of giving you generic or name brand?

and

2. what are the differences between them?

Thanks for your help
 
Some insurance plans require that generics are filled unless the Doctor writes the script for brand-name and checks the Dispense As Written box on the script. Pharmacies sometimes do this regardless to save you money. Other times, they simply don't have any brand-name in stock so they fill generics. You'll occasionally even get a mix.

The difference is mostly subjective. Generics should be just as good as the brand-names.
 
I figured they we're for the most part relative. I don't notice much difference.
Also, odd that they would include both brands.

thanks for the response.
 
Generics should be as good as the brand names, but often are not. The recipes/formulas for said drugs can alter the pharmacokinetics. In order to be FDA approved they must be within a certain tolerance. I forget the exact number now, but I want to say somewhere with 10%.

This is why certain drugs with very narrow therapeutic windows are often required to be brand name.

Just food for thought.
 
Generics are supposed to be within a couple of percent in terms of amount of active drug contained (well in UK they are)
 
fastandbulbous said:
Generics are supposed to be within a couple of percent in terms of amount of active drug contained (well in UK they are)

That is not quite accurate....

I pulled out my old notes...

In the US the FDA classifies therapeutical equivalence (in regards to generic drugs) as:

Drugs that are pharmaceutically equivalent to their Brand name counterparts... meaning they must contain the exact same amount of the active drug.

Drugs that are bioequivalent. They must meet acceptable in vitro and in vivo standards.

The FDA allows for for a statistical variability of 20% in regards to bioequivalence in blood level studies. The average observed difference in absorption between Generic and Brand name products is 3.5%.
 
Ummm maybe it's just me, but I thought Watson was a generic? Am I wrong? 8) :\
 
You are correct. The official brand-name Vicodin is produced by Abbott Labs. Watson makes generics for vicodin. I'm pretty sure they produce the brand-name Norco's though.
 
Skyedancer said:
Ummm maybe it's just me, but I thought Watson was a generic? Am I wrong? 8) :\

Watson does produce generic drugs.

They also manufacture the name brand Norco (as well as the generic Watson version). It is one of the most trusted "names" in generic hydrocodone manufacture.

The name brand Vicodin is manufactured by Abbott... I believe.
 
fizzacyst said:
You are correct. The official brand-name Vicodin is produced by Abbott Labs. Watson makes generics for vicodin. I'm pretty sure they produce the brand-name Norco's though.

JINX! :D
 
Brand Name Medications vs. Generic Drugs: The Differences Are Real.

http://74.50.8.219/BvsG.html

Found that online, not sure how accurate it is but the guy does back it up with some scientific evidence, makes for an interesting read if nothing else. I'm inclined to agree with the part on there about generic klonopin versus the brand, I've been on em for years and the brand is much better than any of the generics Ive tried.

Quoted from the site ..

Benzodiazepines - as a class most people can't tell the difference between brand and generic. But benzos are one of the simplest and safest meds around, other than drug-drug interactions that usually make the one med or the other unexpectedly work better, nothing much happens with benzos. So if you're paying out of pocket, you may as well ask for the generic. If your HMO or evil, uncaring insurance carrier demands you take a generic benzodiazepine, just go along with it. The one exception to this is Klonopin. There are some forms of generic clonazepam that are not as good as the brand, and the brand is just superior over all. But how many of you have ever had brand name Klonopin with the 'K' punched out in the center of the pill? That's what I thought. We've had generic versions that are good and we've had generic versions that are just complete shit sugar pills. Sorry, too many pills, too much memory weirdness to give you any sort guide as to which manufacturers to avoid. But the sad fact is that there's a lot of clonazepam out there that is practically worthless, and the FDA doesn't seem to care one way or the other about it. I found one old study when the bioequivalence standard was only 75% and generic diazepam vs. brand Valium didn't even meet that!
 
Question regarding effectivness of certain Generics Vs NameBrand

Hello, if a mod would like to move this thread, thats fine, I thought this would be a good spot:

I am looking for anyone with expierience with the drugs: Fluoxetine (Prozac)
and Tramadol HCL (Ultram).

Who here has taken (more than once, looking for expierience) either drug, both generic & name brand? My pdoc never tries to give me prescriptions for name-brand drugs, except one, Prozac. He said that he belives prozac is more effective than its generic, fluoxetine. So money in his pocket is not the initiative.
Does anyone have expierience with this drug to say the pfizer brand is worth the extra money? The pharmacist said there is no difference really between the namebrand and it's generic - my doctor also said that they "would say that" - Again he prescribes me generics 100% of the time, this was the only time he reccomended the name-brand.

I am also on tramadol, and am wondering if anyone has tried both Ultram, and generic Tramadol, and could comment on if ultram was considerably more effective, or just the same? If so, is it worth the extra money?

If you have any information regarding similar medications (other SSRI's, Ultracet, or other pain medication similar in strength as tramadol - eg - not Vicodin, or Oxycodone)

Thank you in advance for reading, and I really hope to get feedback, as this is something I have been wondering for awhile.
 
I would have to agree with most of the other previous posters. There should be little to no difference, at least not one you could obviously pinpoint. I always thought the difference was in the percentage of drug, but also think it's a game your mind can play tricks on you with. When the reference "generic" is made, a lot assume it will be less potent and have less of an effect because it isn't the "real" thing. So taking the script with that mindset could easilly trick yourself into thinking the drug is less effective than if it were the brand name. If that makes any sense...

I do know for sure that depending on your insurance and pharmacy, they fill the script generic many times because of the price difference. Some insurance plans prefer you to go the generic route because it costs them less, and pharmacies will also fill your script generic to save you money. Some will ask if you prefer generic to brand names... it all depends on where you go, i guess. And I guess it also can vary with the physician your seeing. Either way, there isn't much of a difference you should be able to notice. If you seem to think the generic isn't working as well as the brand name and it is a problem, I would just ask the pharmacy if they have the brand name in stock or try talking with your doctor. Never hurts to ask if it is something your really concerned with...
 
Hello, if a mod would like to move this thread, thats fine, I thought this would be a good spot:

I am looking for anyone with expierience with the drugs: Fluoxetine (Prozac)
and Tramadol HCL (Ultram).

Who here has taken (more than once, looking for expierience) either drug, both generic & name brand? My pdoc never tries to give me prescriptions for name-brand drugs, except one, Prozac. He said that he belives prozac is more effective than its generic, fluoxetine. So money in his pocket is not the initiative.
Does anyone have expierience with this drug to say the pfizer brand is worth the extra money? The pharmacist said there is no difference really between the namebrand and it's generic - my doctor also said that they "would say that" - Again he prescribes me generics 100% of the time, this was the only time he reccomended the name-brand.

I am also on tramadol, and am wondering if anyone has tried both Ultram, and generic Tramadol, and could comment on if ultram was considerably more effective, or just the same? If so, is it worth the extra money?

If you have any information regarding similar medications (other SSRI's, Ultracet, or other pain medication similar in strength as tramadol - eg - not Vicodin, or Oxycodone)

Thank you in advance for reading, and I really hope to get feedback, as this is something I have been wondering for awhile.

I'll make this response short since I think the general concept of generic vs brand name has been covered well, but I wanted to offer a quick, specific answer. I've tried both brand name ultram (extended release 300 mg and instant release 50 mg) and plenty of types of generic IR tramadol 50 mg, and a generic 200 mg extended release type. I have never noticed any difference between the brand name and generic, at least of tramadol.

So many companies make tramadol that the manufacturers must stay competitive, and if they had a subpar product, their business would get swallowed up by the multitude of rival manufacturers. This helps beyond the legal requirements to ensure that all of the generics of trams are more or less the same. So the only thing you're missing out on by getting generic tramadol is the high prices of the brand name product =P
 
I've never noticed any difference between any generic and name brand. But I do think generic Mallinkrodt Hydrocodone preparations are substandard to any other generic (like Watson or Qualitest).
 
When I go to fill my Dilaudid's I actually prefer that they give me the Generic 4mg Mallinkrodt Dilaudids opposed to the brand name's. They honestly seem to work better to me and are easy to prep if you really want to slam them. The white ones with "M" on one side and "4" on the other. But when it came down to my Fentanyl patches I always had better luck with the brand name duragesic then I ever did with Sandoz or Watson's.
 
ok ok all i know is i can take 4 yellow norcos (brandname) and take 6 white norcos (generic) and feel the same....the white norcos are definitly not as strong as the brandname yellows


IN my opinion
 
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