Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
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Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
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A new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine says that patients are less likely to adhere to generic drugs that are different colours, than non-generics. http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/
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Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
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Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
posted at 3/1/2013 9:53 AM GMT
on bmj.com
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*Moderator*
Posts: 1436
First: 7/4/2011 Last: 17/5/2013 |
A new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine says that patients are less likely to adhere to generic drugs that are different colours, than non-generics. http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1487287 From news piece: "In this study, researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston analyzed national data on patients taking anti-epileptic drugs and found that patients were over 50 percent more likely to stop taking their medication as prescribed if they received pills that were a different color than pills they had previously taken.This was determined from the longer time lapses in having such prescriptions refilled." This a worry because non adherence for people with epilepsy could experience seizures and cause other health problems. What do you think about colour and shape of drugs? I would be interested to know about the conflict of interests of this study (anyone have access?) - is it funded by a pharma company with a grudge against generics? Whether it is or not, should there be more thought into the presentation of drugs? |
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Re: Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
posted at 3/1/2013 11:52 AM GMT
on bmj.com
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Posts: 3
First: 2/10/2012 Last: 3/1/2013 |
Hi Matthew, Interesting article. Instinctively I would have said yes. In the USA though, there's a federal law saying that generic drugs must be different to branded drugs - this was to help stop counterfeits being made and sold. So given the proliferation of different tablets, there are websites to help the public identify tablets: http://www.drugs.com/pill_identification.html I would personally suggest some standardisation along the lines of what they do with warfarin tablets (where it's very important to take the right dose!) - different colours for different doses, which are the same whoever makes the tablets (the shapes vary to distinguish the manufacturer I think). Krishna |
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Re: Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
posted at 3/1/2013 2:31 PM GMT
on bmj.com
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Posts: 13
First: 2/5/2012 Last: 8/1/2013 |
When I go to a supermarket I might by a branded item rather than the supermarket's own brand. The two goods may be equivalent in most respects but I have a particular loyalty to the brand I have enjoyed in the past. For a patient taking a drug, that perhaps for the first time brings seizures under control, how much stronger will that loyalty be? Switching to a generic will be all the more obvious if the colour of the pill is different and I suggest a "reverse placebo effect" may come in to play. The patient may not want the drug to work so that they can go back to the doctor and resume the branded treatment they had before. Although I will probably be accused of splitting hairs I'm not sure it is right to describe branded and generic drugs as bioequivalent. The active ingredient may be the same but excipients will be different. This in turn could alter the pharmacokinetic properties. So like the supermarket own brands, equivalent in most respects I think is nearer the truth. |
Forums » Open clinical » General clinical » Should branded and generic drugs be the same colour and shape?
