Understanding Generic Drugs
If patent protection from a drug is removed or expires any company can manufacture and distribute (sale) it, than it becomes a generic drug. There is no difference in generic and brand name drug in its chemical structure and properties. Brand name drugs and generic drugs are same in terms of its therapeutic use, dosage, route of administration, risks and side effects, safety and strength.
There is a myth about generic drugs that they are less efficacious and poorer quality, but there is no basis in this myth. FDA accepts both as equal in terms of quality and efficacy. The FDA applies the same quality control standards for all drug manufacturing facilities, including facilities that manufacture generic drugs. Many companies manufacture both brand-name and generic drugs in the same facility with approval from FDA. In fact FDA estimates that approximately 50% of the generic drugs are produced and marketed by brand-name companies and most of them use the same manufacturing facilities for both brand-name and generic drugs.
The number of generic medicines is very large these days and it is becoming larger day by day as patent protections are removed or expiring from many brand name drugs and they become generic drug. Many drugs which are older than 20 years generally lose there patent protection due to expiry of patent protection. Theoretically they all join the club of generic drug.
Some of the examples of generic drugs are generic Viagra, generic propecia, generic xenical and many more. Many antibiotics are now generic, so are many antihistaminics. Many pain killer drugs are also in generic list. The biggest advantage of generic drug is the lower cost without any known disadvantage.
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