Any cheap alternatives to expensive anti-clotting drug Plavix?!
Question: Any cheap alternatives to expensive anti-clotting drug Plavix!?
Answers:
Here's the DL:
Plavix is NOT an anti-clotting drug (in medicine, the semantics of this matter)!. Plavix is an anti-platelet agent!. Coumadin (warfarin) is an anti-clotting agent!. They work completely different and have different purposes!. Some patients will be on both, others will only be on either or!.
Plavix has a cousin, Ticlid (ticlodipine)!. Ticlodipine is available generically but has some severe disadvantages and as such, is rarely ever used now that Plavix is sold!. Ticlodipine came out first and think of it as the first child that the parents made all the big mistakes with!. Ticlodipine is known to cause a dramatic drop in several of your white blood cells (very key parts of your immune system that fight infections- it can even wipe out nearly all of your immune system)!. Ticlodipine is also known to cause some pretty severe bleeds!.
In fact, ticlodipine has a Black Box Warning on it because of the impact on WBCs and the increased risk for bleeds!. A black box warning is the strongest warning/precaution that the FDA can issue without pulling a drug off the market or making it available directly from the manufacturer only!. Plavix does not have these black box warnings or severe side effects that ticlidopine does, so it is regarded to be much safer!. Plavix also has a lot of good data and evidence for use in certain stroke patients, heart attack survivors, and those that receive stents (among other uses)!. Honestly, I can't remember selling ticlodipine at all in the last 3 years!. And I highly doubt that your doctor would agree to switching you from Plavix to Ticlid!.
Some of you reading this will remember that Plavix's generic, clopidogrel, became available for about four days and then it was pulled from the market!. Plavix is actually still under patent!. A generic company found some loophole in the wording and manufactured and sold generic clopidogrel!. Since Plavix is still under patent, the Plavix manufacturer sued the generic company and production came to a stand still!. The drug industry provides such large profits that the generic company still made a boat load of money with only four days of clopidogrel on the market and a lawsuit to pay out!. Crazy, huh!?
A new cousin to Plavix and Ticlid is set to come out very soon!. It's name is Effient!. I know it was undergoing priority review by the FDA a couple of months ago and I'm not sure where it is at right now!. This may signal that Plavix will be coming off patent soon!.
I don't know how long Bristol-Meyer's patent for Plavix will last but hopefully it will be up soon!. It's a great drug that saves lives but I know its crazy expensive and I'm aware that some patients just can't afford it!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Plavix is NOT an anti-clotting drug (in medicine, the semantics of this matter)!. Plavix is an anti-platelet agent!. Coumadin (warfarin) is an anti-clotting agent!. They work completely different and have different purposes!. Some patients will be on both, others will only be on either or!.
Plavix has a cousin, Ticlid (ticlodipine)!. Ticlodipine is available generically but has some severe disadvantages and as such, is rarely ever used now that Plavix is sold!. Ticlodipine came out first and think of it as the first child that the parents made all the big mistakes with!. Ticlodipine is known to cause a dramatic drop in several of your white blood cells (very key parts of your immune system that fight infections- it can even wipe out nearly all of your immune system)!. Ticlodipine is also known to cause some pretty severe bleeds!.
In fact, ticlodipine has a Black Box Warning on it because of the impact on WBCs and the increased risk for bleeds!. A black box warning is the strongest warning/precaution that the FDA can issue without pulling a drug off the market or making it available directly from the manufacturer only!. Plavix does not have these black box warnings or severe side effects that ticlidopine does, so it is regarded to be much safer!. Plavix also has a lot of good data and evidence for use in certain stroke patients, heart attack survivors, and those that receive stents (among other uses)!. Honestly, I can't remember selling ticlodipine at all in the last 3 years!. And I highly doubt that your doctor would agree to switching you from Plavix to Ticlid!.
Some of you reading this will remember that Plavix's generic, clopidogrel, became available for about four days and then it was pulled from the market!. Plavix is actually still under patent!. A generic company found some loophole in the wording and manufactured and sold generic clopidogrel!. Since Plavix is still under patent, the Plavix manufacturer sued the generic company and production came to a stand still!. The drug industry provides such large profits that the generic company still made a boat load of money with only four days of clopidogrel on the market and a lawsuit to pay out!. Crazy, huh!?
A new cousin to Plavix and Ticlid is set to come out very soon!. It's name is Effient!. I know it was undergoing priority review by the FDA a couple of months ago and I'm not sure where it is at right now!. This may signal that Plavix will be coming off patent soon!.
I don't know how long Bristol-Meyer's patent for Plavix will last but hopefully it will be up soon!. It's a great drug that saves lives but I know its crazy expensive and I'm aware that some patients just can't afford it!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
plavix is not the same as warfarin as they work in completely different ways!. to my knowledge Plavix (cloprodigrel) is still under patent and therefore cannot be reproduced by generic manufacturer'sWww@Answer-Health@Com
Same drug (clopidogrel) is available in other countries at much cheaper rates!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
see if there is a generic for plavix!. if not, talk to your doctor about a cheaper medicine!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
you shouldn't switch unless your dr says ok!. there is coumadin which is generic and heparinWww@Answer-Health@Com