One patient’s health history and biochemical composition isn’t the same as another. While medical advancements have been made through research, trials, and tested treatment approaches, each patient deserves individualized care.
It can literally be a matter of life and death for some individuals if they don’t get the individualized care they need. Commercially available medications may not be appropriate or even dangerous for patients with certain complex medical situations and conditions. That’s why drug compounding is used. Many doctors and specialists prefer to use compounded medications, which can be tailored to the patient’s needs in terms of dosage, time release, and other factors, rather than prescribing a generic version of an existing drug.
What Is Drug Compounding And Why Is It Important?
The practice of drug compounding is the scientific method for making customized medications. Compounding pharmacies can produce both sterile and non-sterile chemicals. Some pharmacies only do one form of compounding, and some do both. You can find more information about these two online or here.
When making a compounded medication preparation, it’s the responsibility of the compounder to ensure that the correct amount of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) is used and that all ingredients are of the right quality and purity.
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Possibly, you want to know more about the specifics. Here are some benefits of drug compounding, listed in no particular order:
1. Get Medicines That Are Hard To Find
A medicine may occasionally be discontinued by a big pharma manufacturer. This mainly happens because the drug isn’t being used by enough patients, making it unprofitable to continue mass-producing. But what about the people who still require the medication? There may still be hundreds or perhaps thousands of individuals who need the drug.
If only one individual around the world still requires the drug, a compounding pharmacist can make it by compounding, allowing the patient to have it. A compound drug is made specifically for a patient’s need. A familiar drug can be compounded to have specific strengths or dosages. Unique treatments that wouldn’t normally be possible with conventional prescriptions can be made by combining several components. Compound drug specialists provide a specific market and can draw in additional clients trying to fill specialized prescriptions.
2. Allergy-Safe
Drugs can have different impacts on various individuals. In fact, some medications are associated with higher allergic reactions than others.
There are several chemicals in traditional treatments that might cause allergic responses. Gluten, artificial flavors, or lactose are examples on that list. There’s a possibility that some people will have adverse reactions to the preservatives used in commercial medicines. Through the practice of compounding pharmacy, it’s possible to produce drugs that are both safe and well tolerated by patients.
3. Easier To Take
Patients are less likely to take their prescribed medication when it has an unpleasant taste. Many medications can be flavored by a compounding pharmacist to make them more tolerable, without reducing their effectiveness. This comes in very handy when administering medication to patients who might otherwise refuse it, such as young kids, the elderly, or even animals.
Different dose forms, i.e., how medicine is administered to a patient, are just one approach in which compounded medications maximize patients’ treatment options. It’s administered by a number of means, including capsules, creams, drops, fast-dissolving pills, and injections. Take the following as examples:
- Many drugs that aren’t already accessible in a time-release form can have their release slowed by a compounding pharmacy. Compounders could, for instance, create an extended-release version of melatonin, a popular over-the-counter sleep aid. Because of this, melatonin is able to work throughout the night, which ultimately results in improved sleep patterns.
- Patients who have trouble swallowing a tablet, for example, could be more inclined to drink a liquid version of their medication if it were flavored to their liking. To facilitate skin absorption, several medicines can be formulated as topical formulations like creams and gel.
4. Personalized Formula
Years of research go into the making of pharmaceutical products for commercial use. The pharmaceutical industry puts these medicines through rigorous testing and clinical studies to assure their safety and efficacy.
However, the requirements of each individual patient vary, and a medicine that works well for one person may not have the same impact on another.
Patients would have no choice except to take whatever inactive chemicals are in pre-made drugs purchased from conventional drugstores. They also won’t be able to consult their doctors or pharmacists beforehand about the dosage that’s right for them. Compounding pharmacies have more flexibility in terms of working with the prescribing physician to find the optimal dosage for each individual patient.
Conclusion
Benefits of compounding include, but are not limited to, meeting the specific needs of individual patients when conventionally manufactured pharmaceuticals fall short. It’s crucial to maintain the availability of safe compounded drugs for those who need them to protect public health.
