[Hopeful23]

#1068182

Lacie ” title=”Smile” />
Yay, your almost there girl. Okay, so here is my opinion and some information I have received along the way. With generic you don’t always get the EXACT dose of actual synthetic hormone. For example, If your starting dose is 25mcg and you start on generic you may only actually receive 23-24 mcg of actual hormone. Sine there are SOO many manufactures of levothyroxine you may only get 22-23mcg on your refill. I would recommend staying name brand. You always get thee exact dose everytime. I chose syntroid and my friend chose levothyroxine and I obtained a normal thyroid level from the start and she is still feeling hypothyroid and her levels are all out of whack. Again, this is what I was told in difference to name brand and generic. However, cost is the down fall. I pay 70.00 for three months however, I would rather pay more and know im getting the dose im paying for, ya know?? This is totally up to you obviously but I wanted to let you know. Also, as far as fillers I was told it has a lot to do with the color of the pill as far as the dyes go! My swollen lip was a sensitivity to red dye #2 so my endo prescribed me the 50mcg and I just take a pill in a half to stay at my 75mcg dose. I guess the white pill in the synthroid brand is the dose with the less fillers and additives (which makes sense). Okay, as far as levoxly and Synthroid the fillers are the same according to dose however levoxyl is cheaper than synthroid (pharm told me this as well). I hope whatever decision you make, you obtain normalcy VERY QUICK…. I hope I helped a little bit ” title=”Smile” /> Let us know what route you choose ” title=”Smile” />

Hugs
Krystal

[elf]

#1068183

I agree that the generic content may vary slightly and therefore the 100mcg of brand name would not be equal 100mcg of a generic, so some playing with the dosage would be needed, (with switching, too) – not that it’s impossible.

Myself, used Synthroid only (at various times, my dh and I have used light yellow -100 mcg, light green -88mcg, light pirple -175mcg and light blue-150mcg).

[ewmb]

#1068184

Lacie,
Levoxyl is what’s called a brand name generic. It is made in the US by King Pharmaceuticals and has FDA approval. The generics that you should be concerned about are the ones that don’t come from a manufacturer that is consistent in it’s manufacturing practices. Your insurance company has something called a drug formulary or listing of what it will pay for and how much the co=pay should be for certain drug. For instance on my insurance I would pay $10 for generic synthroid whether it was levoxyl or an unnamed generic. You should be able to see this formulary on line. If you can’t call your insurance company and ask them to send you a list. Levoxyl is a generic and Synthroid is the brand name in this case but they all contain levoxythyrine, the active ingredient. It’s complicated I know. I had to try and get the drug information center where I work to explain it to me. The real thing you want to know is how much it will cost you out of pocket no matter what it is that you will be on. You should decided this with your doctor but your pharmacist may be able to answer questions for you in a more timely manner depending on what your question is. Go to the about thyroid.com website done by Mary Shomon and she has great information on the various brands of synthetic and natural hormone, T4 only, T3 etc..

I wanted to be on levoxyl because it did not contain the inactive ingredient that probably caused my rash but Synthroid did. The dyes are also inactive ingredients but they seem to follow the different dosage levels across the board from what I can tell. You have to check each drug separately for what inactive ingredients are in it. The only thing the FDA requires to be the same in a generic is the
"active" ingredient. Synthroid actually contains some different inactives as the BRAND name than LEVOXYL being a brand name generic.

Hope this helps some,
ewmb

[runlacie]

#1018970

My labs are Monday and my Dr. and I both expect that I will be hypo. She plans on starting me on 50 mcg replacement and recommends Levoxyl. She also says the generic should be no different. I doubt my insurance will cover Levoxyl and it looks like it would be about $1 per pill (less if I do 90 days) compared to $4 per month for generic. I don’t mind paying if there’s even a smidge of a reason to pay a little more- but since she says whatever I choose I have to stay on FOREVER and can’t just switch- I thought I should think about this. What does everyone else do? Anybody have any good reason for taking the brand- other than the little butterfly-bowtie shaped pills are kinda cute and maybe they would split better??? Does it work better? More consistent? Less side effects from fillers (or whatever)? Any info appreciated!

[npatterson]

#1068185

There are four "branded" forms of Levothyroxine in the US. Synthroid, Levothroid, Levoxyl and Unithroid. They are the only ones that have FDA approval. It is not a good idea to switch from one to the other, but one can change brands if necessary (usually "necessary" is designated by insurance companies). The truly generic brands tend to be different every month at the pharmacy, so you are nowhere near getting the same thing every month.

Take care,

[runlacie]

#1068186

Wow, thanks gang! I know I can always count on you all to help me figure this stuff out! Great info, extremely helpful!!! I guess since it sounds like brand is probably the way to go for consistency, I will just stick with what the doctor and I have pre-agreed upon, which was Levoxyl. Seems like a small difference to pay for knowing it will be the same always. I hope it works and I really hope I am hypo on my Monday labs so we can get things rolling! I’m still feeling more and more sluggy every day. urrrgh.

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