Are generic drugs really inferior medicines?

Abstract

In this issue Gagne et al. report an elegant case-crossover study of seizures in patients on antiepileptic drugs. They found that a dispensation episode approximately triples the risk of having a seizure within 21 days, but the risk is not statistically different whether the dispensation was of the same brand-name or generic drug as previously used or a switch from brand-name to a generic or from a generic to a brand name. The cause of the seizure might be a delay in taking medication or late redispensation, among others, but apparently the nature of the product dispensed is not relevant in this study; this may alleviate some of the concerns about generic drugs and epilepsy.

• Authors: N Moore, D Berdaï, B Bégaud
• Journal: Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics (Clin Pharmacol Ther) Vol. 88 Issue 3 Pg. 302-4 (Sep 2010) ISSN: 1532-6535 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 20725079 (Publication Type: Comment, Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Anticonvulsants
• Drugs, Generic

Topics

• Anticonvulsants (adverse effects, pharmacokinetics, therapeutic use)
• Drugs, Generic (adverse effects, pharmacokinetics, therapeutic use)
• Epilepsy (drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Humans
• Risk
• Therapeutic Equivalency
• Treatment Outcome