Is budeprion xl the same drug as wellbutrin xl. when did it become generic? I have been taking wellbutrin xl for a year and I want to be sure it is the same.
i have been on wellbutrin for quite a while. i went and refilled my medications today and instead of my welbutrin i recieved Budeprion XL. I have several drug guides and cant really find out anything about this particular generic
I also was switched to budeprion xl by my pharmacy. I've been taking it since 12-30-06 and this past week I've had anxiety, mild panic attacks and thinking I'm going to die. I had some Wellbutrin XL 150 left over so I switched back this morning and I've been much better today, not perfect, but better. No more budeprion xl for me, I'll pay the higher copay if I have to.
6
Verwon Says:
[Moderator]
Saturday, 1/13/2007 8:13:52 PM
Well, unfortunately, there IS a difference between generic and name brand drugs, even though your doctors and pharmacists are NOT allowed to tell you that. The FDA does not permit them to acknowledge these differences, they claim it can scare people away from taking needed medications, however, as some of you have experienced, you can clearly tell that in some cases there are difference.
The law in the US allows generic drugs to differ from their name brand counterparts by as much as plus or minus 20% in the ACTIVE ingredient, so thus, if you were taking a 100mg pill of the name brand and then were switched to the generic, you may have only been actually getting an 80mg tablet, which could be ineffective in treating your condition. In other case, you could have been getting a higher milligram pill than you were supposed to, which in some cases could cause increased side effects, and perhaps overdosage.
It is possible, I have had it happen personally, to have pills that differ in the dosage of the active ingredient, all in the same bottle from the same prescription fill.
I originally experienced this problem when we moved and the new pharmacy I had to use had a generic version of Darvocet and I had previously been on the name brand. Sometimes I would take a pill and it would have no effect, other times a tablet would work fine, then again sometimes I could take one and get sick and have a reaction as if I had taken too many.
I was starting to wonder if I was crazy of what, since the docs, pharmacists, and all medical professionals swear up and down that generics are identical to the name brands, but then my husband was prescribed the same thing and when he took his, he had the same problem. Doing some more research online, I began to discover that many people were noticing problems with a lot of the generic medications, so I was wondering what was going, was it just poor quality control at some companies, or something else?
So I started hunting and reading some more information on it, and I discovered the truth, the generic meds DO NOT have to be exactly the same as their name brand counterparts.
They really don't even have to be the exact same ingredient, as long as the company can show the active substance they are using is BioEquivelent to the original active ingredient used. So while this happens rarely, in some cases, you could get something entirely different in your generic med, even though it will be labeled as the same thing and you won't know the difference.
If a medical professional admits this, they can lose their license to practice, like I said, the FDA's reasoning is it will scare too many people away from taking needed meds.
Anyway, for anyone who doubts this, here is an article that contains links to the relevant laws, so there is proof, I am not just ranting and making this up, there is a reason you have had problems and noticed such a difference.
I had the same thing happen with my birth control when a generic became available. I was taking Desogen and they swore up and down when I asked about the new generic, that is was identical, the only difference would be in the inactive ingredients, that was before I learned what I now know, so I believed them and accepted the generic prescription.
Needless to say, it was awful! Instead of bleeding for one week, I bled all the time, even though I never missed any pills or took them late. I talked to my doctor and she suggested we do the brand medically necessary, I wasn't sure why that should make a difference, but she said maybe there was an inactive ingredient that just disagreed with my body chemistry, so I agreed and went back to the name brand. WOW! Within a week of being back on the name brand, not more problems.
Then later, after more fiascos with generics, I learned the reality of the situation.
I am sure you can all imagine what can happen with that 40% deviation window if a company has poor quality control, that is why Able Labs was shut down last year and they were never able to recover, they had to sell out their proprietary patents, they weren't testing regular to make sure their meds stayed in that 40% window of differential and some drugs were differing in amounts by as much as 75% to 80%, very dangerous.
The active ingredient/generic med in Wellbutrin is called Bupropion,Budeprion is just a trade name used by one of the generic manufacturers. When the drug is available for generic production, the company does not necessarily have to call it by the active ingredient/generic name, they can name it something else if they wish, and that is the case here.
My links will open in an other window, so you can remain at this page, while checking them out at the same time.
On a further note, since this is the same med, that would also explain why you are having trouble finding it listed sometimes under the name Budeprion, the usage information, side effects, and etc. would all be exactly the same as it is for Wellbutrin or the active ingredient Bupropion, so it isn't necessary for them to list it seperately. The name is different, the active substance isn't, so they information doesn't change.
Wow, a friend emailed me this forum after I wrote to her of my symptoms. This most recent refill was generic budeprion xl 300 mg, and its not the same was Wellbutrin xl 300 mg. I have been shaky, ticked off, unable to focus, unable to complete a sentence, etc etc etc. So I called my dr after 2 weeks of this getting worse by the day. My doc take the same med and he was given the generic, had the same symptoms and went back to name brand. So he is cutting me back to half dosage for the next month, until my scheduled 6 month check-up. Now here is the kicker.....doc says there is no generic wellbutrin xl 300 mg! So my doc is calling the pharmacy that filled my meds to find out just what they gave me. Im such a mess right now. Last time I use that pharmacy and take generics. Im ticked offf ,scared, feel like Im falling apart......I hope I get better fast, my birthday is tomorrow
8
Verwon Says:
[Moderator]
Friday, 1/26/2007 6:27:03 AM
Hmm, not sure where your doctor heard that, but then again, I would imagine it is impossible for them to keep up with all new drugs, especially the generic versions that come out on the market, but there is indeed a sustained release of the 300mgs tablets available.
I am finishing up 3 weeks of WB 150 mg XL and will be starting on Budeprion XL 300 mg within the next few days. I googled Budeprion and found this website. After reading some of the testimonials on here, I am worried that the new medication will do more harm than good. I am very interested in people's responses to taking Budeprion XL 300 mg; both positive and negative experiences.
I am having unusual symptoms after switching from 300mg Wellbutrin XL to 300mg Budeprion XL. I have been taking the generic for approx 60 days and after this time can say with certainty, there is something wrong with this generic. My face and neck have a painful rash with red blisters. I am tired and have severe headaches. I have started to withdraw again. I am calling my doctor today!
12
Verwon Says:
[Moderator]
Tuesday, 4/10/2007 7:55:49 PM
Well first of all the inactive ingredients do not need to be identical at all to the name brands, they are allowed to be entirely different, which can affect how it works for you and your reactions to it.
Also as I stated in my post above, the generics are allowed to differ in the name brand by as much as plus or minus 20% of the total dosage, so that can definitely affect you.
I would recommend asking your doctor to put name brand necessary on your prescription or calling around to various pharmacies to find a different generic that you can try.
I also experienced changes when I switched to generic buproprion. They were most noticeable the day I officially switch...then that entire month I was just off. I felt lost and displaced...I was shaky, had hand tremors, felt like I was getting tunnel vision sometimes, I would feel panicky in the afternoons. With the second refil, though, my symptoms subsided. However, the good news, is that for me this generic seems to be working better than the brand Wellbutrin. But that's just my experience. I was always slightly agitated while on Wellbutrin, and now I feel more euphoric and not as easy to anger...In fact, nothing phases me...I never get my feathers ruffled. So there definitely IS a difference, it's just that in my case it happens to be an improvement...so I will stick with the generic Budeprion.
I've taken every antidepressant and every anti anxitety drug on the market. The budeprion was by far the WORST. by the end of the 1st bottle, I was having shortness of breath, chest was tight, very earily ruffled, flet like I was going to melt down.
damn, you guys are scaring the crap out of me! i just started taking budeprion. i was supposed to start on wellbutrin but the pharmacy told me that cmsp doesn't cover it. so far i can feel a slight difference for the better. i am getting the typical side effects but they are the same as when i took wellbutrin 5 years ago for a short time. i can't stand these lobbyists that pay congress members to have the government lay off on these medicine laws. generics should be the same as brand name when it comes to the active ingrediant, not just 80% but 100%!
I don't want to say I'm glad anyone is having trouble with this generic, but I am glad to know that we may be able to correct our problems by switching back. My husband has been on welbutrin xl for at least a couple of years and was switched last month to budeprion, and it's all I can do not to pack up and move out. He is a complete Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde... the monster seems to come out each night about dark. He's moody, easily agitated, and he has yelled at me for the first time since I met him. I'm worried for him, but now I hope we can talkto his doc and get this resolved.
I just saw my psychiatrist today and ask him if there were a difference in wellbutrin and the generic. He said yes....the generic is not as smooth...and it has a tendancy to cause headaches because of that. Hey I got that from the horses mouth.....
I have also had mood swings that are out of control. I am switching back to Wellbutrin XL asap. I have also gained 5 pounds in 2 weeks.Anyone else have weight gain problems. I gained 25 lbs on Lexapro so switched have losted about 14 lbs but slowly gain it back I think it is the generic pills doing it Have had mean headaches.
I too have switched to the generic budeprionXl 300mg. It's only been 3 days, but am feeling different, moody, more emotional, and quick to snap. Is this possible only after 3 days?
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