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Florinef-compounding pharmacies
Florinaf
also see Addisons disease
Florinef - compounding pharmaciesStatement: Dear Dr Mike, The ARE compounding pharmacists who will put
together fludrocortisone acetate in whatever strength you need for a lot
less than brand name florinef.. Information about this can be found on my
website www.geocities.com/k9addisons/pharmacists.html This concerns me,
because there is the great possibility of dogs with AD being destroyed
because the owners don't know there is a price alternative. Thank you
for forwarding this on..Melody
www.geocities.com/k9addisons/
Answer: Melody-
There is a significant cost factor when treating a larger dog with Florinef
(Rx). If compounding pharmacies can provide a less expensive alternative
for patients with hypoadrenocorticism this may help some dogs who might not
otherwise get medicated. Desoxycorticosterone pivalate injection
(Percorten-V Rx), is another alternative for larger dogs that is also less
costly than florinef and also helps when side effects of florinef are a
problem. It has to be injected every three to four weeks but that is an
acceptable option for many pet owners.Mike Richards, DVM
3/4/2000
Q: Dear Dr. Mike; First of all, I'd like to thank you for being there for us ! Your information has helped us tremendous in the illness of our beloved Cardigan Corgi. She nearly died before being diagnosed as suffering from Addison's disease, and although our Vet is a fine compassionate ,young doctor and correctly diagnosed our Dylan, the extensive information about the disease I found at your marvelous Web site!! Our Dylan was put on Florinef Acetate,0.1 mg tabs, one of these 3 times daily, together with 1 Prednisone tablet in the morning,this seems to be a large number of drugs to us to give her every day! Our Dylan has just turned 3 years old and we hope that you can answer our concern, is this disease a lifetime, chronic disease or will she ultimately be cured of this? The medicine (Florinef Acetate) is most expensive and cost $ 50.00 for 100 tabs, however although my wife and I live on Social Security, we would gladly cut down on our food to keep this little Angel alive!! We cannot purchase this medicine from our Vet, except for the Prednisone and wonder if there is perhaps a less expensive source for the Florinef, other than the local drug store? Any help you can give us is greatly appreciated, Dr. Mike and THANK YOU for being there and for the obvious GREAT compassion you show for the animals!
A: H. - I am not aware of a generic equivalent of Florinaf (Rx). It will almost certainly be necessary to keep Dylan on this medication lifelong and in many instances it is necessary to increase the dosage as time goes on. I do not follow the mail-order medication market for veterinary medicine very closely but have not seen this medication for sale in the times I have looked at these publications. You may want to ask your vet about ordering the Florinaf for you. I am pretty sure that The Butler Company, a veterinary distributor, carries Florinaf. Sometimes, but not always, it is possible for a veterinarian to sell a medication for less than the pharmacy and still make enough profit to justify ordering the medication. That is one of the good things about being a veterinarian - we're mostly independent small businessmen who can choose to make a little less in some cases if we want to. Pharmacists working for the larger corporations might not have this option. It is worth explaining the need for a lower cost source of Florinaf to your vet to see if such an arrangement can be worked out.
Good luck with this.
Mike Richards, DVM
Last edited 08/30/02
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