serafina Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Is there a reason why the info sheet that comes with my (generic) lamotrigine says that they are to be swallowed whole and not chewed, crushed or split? There is no score to split them, but I can easily snap them in half by hand. They are not coated, so i can't see slow release being the reason. If I don't swallow them on the first try they will dissolve in the back of my throat. The pharmacy can't give me a good reason, so I thought I would ask here to see if anyone else has run across this problem or have any experience with it. I need some 50 mg pills and have a whole pile of 100 mg that will go to waste if there is a reason why they should not be split. If there is no valid reason to not split them, I'd rather use them up first before I (pay a lot of money to) fill the new prescription. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimako Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 My pdoc told me to split my 100 in half when I needed 50. You probably should ask your pdoc or your pharmacist (who might know more). My gdoc told me that in general, any med that has the score is okay to split. But you should ask your pdoc or pharmacist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt07 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 That's interesting. My lamotrigine (generic) pills by Taro are scored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savannah Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 My pdoc has me split lamictal and also seroquel, . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shesellsseashells Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 I've split 200 mgs before with my pdoc's blessing. Perhaps you should check in with yours as others have suggested? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjs190 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Make sure you are taking regular lamotrigine/Lamictal and not the XR/ER version. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forgetmenot220 Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Mine have all been scored as well but I am on the regular release version. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamagotchi Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 What is the manufacturer of your generic lamotrigine? What do the pills look like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zxrtpky7g Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 My Lamictal was scored when I had it, but then I hated pills and the shape was weird, so I got the ODT Lamictal tablets. The ODT is nice because it is meant to dissolve in your mouth. You can ask about those if pills are tough for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjimjam Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 I used to split my Lamictal when I was taking 300mg/day and given 200mg pills. I can't remember if they were scored. I think I bit them in half. Probably don't do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 (edited) When I was on the non-ODT form, I was able to split them in half. They were scored so it made it easy to snap them in half. I am on the dissolving ones now though because the regular pills were too hard to swallow, and I would gag just looking at them. Edited March 27, 2014 by melissaw72 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serafina Posted March 27, 2014 Author Share Posted March 27, 2014 (edited) They are round, flat about 1/4 inch thick? Maybe about 1/3 inch in diameter? They are NOT scored. Just says 100 on them. The ones i have are from Activis. They are the only generics I can get. They are the regular ones, not XR or ODT. i was looking online for PI sheets for other generic brands that I saw were scored. Even they say "do not split or break". Because of my insurance and the pharmacy I have to get them from, I can only get this brand of generic. I can save $55 if I can split these. I'm just wondering if there is a reason that they would work less effectively if I were to split them? Edited March 27, 2014 by serafina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 How about calling the company who makes them to ask why ... Activis? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamagotchi Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 (edited) Generally if a pill is not coated, you can split it. They are round, flat about 1/4 inch thick? Maybe about 1/3 inch in diameter? They are NOT scored. Just says 100 on them. The ones i have are from Activis. They are the only generics I can get. They are the regular ones, not XR or ODT. That's weird. Do they have any other markings on them? I looked up Actavis lamotrigine 100mg tablets, and it says they're light yellow and scored on one side? This is the pamphlet, look at the very end for description of tablets. http://www.drugs.com/uk/pdf/leaflet/224766.pdf It is from the UK drugs.com, I didn't see any US information on them, perhaps you're not in the US. Edited March 27, 2014 by tamagotchi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) Is it possible that the pharmacy gave you the wrong pills/wrong dose of pills ie 100 mg instead of 200 mg ones? This has happened to me before. Edited March 28, 2014 by melissaw72 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ovOidampUle Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 The only problem I've had splitting lamictal is not being able to split it cleanly. If I had a 100mg, I might split it 60/40 or 65/30/5 and every crumbly ratio in between. I tried to distribute the remainders so my three day average would be about right, but, not ideal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamagotchi Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Is it possible that the pharmacy gave you the wrong pills/wrong dose of pills ie 100 mg instead of 200 mg ones? I think serafina was already taking the 100mg before, so I don't think they were the wrong dose, I just think it is weird that they don't match the description. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Is it possible that the pharmacy gave you the wrong pills/wrong dose of pills ie 100 mg instead of 200 mg ones? I think serafina was already taking the 100mg before, so I don't think they were the wrong dose, I just think it is weird that they don't match the description. I was just thinking how sometimes the manufacturer changes the size and shape of pills sometimes, in any of their doses, and maybe something like that happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ovOidampUle Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 You can poke around on Webmd and see what pills are various dosages are supposed to look like. Not 100% sure it's a standard across all manufacturers, but if you're bored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 My generic lamictal is the diamond shaped one (Teva, I think). I split them every day (they are scored), my dose is 3.5 @ 100mg. So I agree with others, it sounds like your particular generic manufacturer is... weird. Or that the pills you have aren't what they're supposed to be. Or something like that. I'd try taking the pills in to the pharmacist (in the bottle) so they can see what they are, and you can talk about splitting them since they aren't scored. The pharmacist won't even bat an eye at it, they want you to ask questions about if the pills are correct and how to take them - especially for a dose change like you're needing. They will try to help you out with what you have, if possible. We all need to remember (as sylvan noted) that it's good and important to pay attention to the look of our meds at least each time a new bottle is opened/picked up. There may or may not be a description of the pill on the bottle/pamphlet. Walgreens, historically, has flagged my scripts when the manufacturer changes and the pharm techs make a point of telling me. I don't know if other pharmacies do that (and wouldn't count on it). It's important to pay attention with lamictal in particular because there are several other "L" drugs that have been incorrectly dispensed due to misreading doctor writing and similar names. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 Walgreens, historically, has flagged my scripts when the manufacturer changes and the pharm techs make a point of telling me. I don't know if other pharmacies do that (and wouldn't count on it). CVS does this too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimako Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 Walmart sticks a big red sticker across the top of the bottle. My clonozepam changed this past week. They didn't tell me or anything tho. I just found it when I got home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiet storm Posted March 31, 2014 Share Posted March 31, 2014 (edited) They are round, flat about 1/4 inch thick? Maybe about 1/3 inch in diameter? They are NOT scored. Just says 100 on them. The ones i have are from Activis. They are the only generics I can get. They are the regular ones, not XR or ODT. i was looking online for PI sheets for other generic brands that I saw were scored. Even they say "do not split or break". Because of my insurance and the pharmacy I have to get them from, I can only get this brand of generic. I can save $55 if I can split these. I'm just wondering if there is a reason that they would work less effectively if I were to split them? There has to be something else on the pill besides "100". Ive never seen a prescription medication in my life that didnt have some kind of two, three or four digit code consisting of letters and/or numbers on the medication itself. Find that code and go to here to definitively find out what you have: http://www.drugs.com/pill_identification.html EDIT: But if you arent in the US that may be different. Pretty sure the FDA says any prescription med sold in the US has to have a unique code on the medication. Edited March 31, 2014 by quiet storm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serafina Posted April 1, 2014 Author Share Posted April 1, 2014 OK I tried to seach and looked on line for a photo and these are the ones that I have: http://www.egeszsegkalauz.hu/keresok/gyogyszer/lamotrigin-teva-100-mg-tabletta-15760.html They are in a box on cards with individual plastic pockets on top that you have to push them out of foil on the bottom, so I'm rather sure that they are lamotrigine. I asked at the pharmacy again. and they said no I can not split them. They do not know why, but they say the instructions say that if your dose is less than a full pill you should take the next lowest dose size. So if you are supposed to take 75 mg and there are no 25 mg pills you should only take the 50 mg pills and not split them to have a whole 50 and then half of a 50 to get your 75 mg dose. I guess it is a mystery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiet storm Posted April 1, 2014 Share Posted April 1, 2014 Thought you said they were from activis. That link shows teva. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamagotchi Posted April 2, 2014 Share Posted April 2, 2014 Do they seem to have a coating? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serafina Posted April 4, 2014 Author Share Posted April 4, 2014 Sorry, I am confused. The quetiapine is Activis. The lamotrigine say Ratiopharm on the box and Teva on the sheet. Teva bought Ratiopharm. Or perhaps they merged, I do not know for sure. They are the same company now, so please do not tell me that my sheets do not match my meds. Because I think that they are trying to save money by using up the old boxes and not printing new sheets with the old name. They look exactly like that picture in the link. White, round, flat. No, they are not coated at all. They will dissolve in my throat if I do not swallow them on the first try or quick enough. I solved the problem by filling the prescription for the 50 mg pills as soon as I had the money to do that. But I am still curious why you cannot split them. No matter what language I look at or what manufacturer they all say the same thing. Even for the tablets that are scored. Even for real Lamictal it says that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimako Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 That is really odd, I agree. Mine are that weird parallelogram shape and have a score. My sheet from the pharmacy says not to split them and there's even a sticker on it that says that. But when I asked the pharmacist and my pdoc, they said it was okay. Maybe I'm being too cynical here but maybe they don't want people getting insurance covered 100mg (or whatever) and splitting it when they would have to pay twice to get refills of 50mg. That's probably a stretch. maybe. Did I mention I'm very cynical, especially about businesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiet storm Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 IMO, if its not some specially formulated extended release version I dont see why you couldnt split them. The only concern is since they arent scored you will probably have a hard time getting even doses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortypants1976 Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Is there a reason why the info sheet that comes with my (generic) lamotrigine says that they are to be swallowed whole and not chewed, crushed or split? There is no score to split them, but I can easily snap them in half by hand. They are not coated, so i can't see slow release being the reason. If I don't swallow them on the first try they will dissolve in the back of my throat. The pharmacy can't give me a good reason, so I thought I would ask here to see if anyone else has run across this problem or have any experience with it. I need some 50 mg pills and have a whole pile of 100 mg that will go to waste if there is a reason why they should not be split. If there is no valid reason to not split them, I'd rather use them up first before I (pay a lot of money to) fill the new prescription. well i read online they arnt to broken unless authorized by a doctor. as for crushing them they actually work the same way crushed. if anyone is having the same issues of them dissolving before being able to be swallowed. I then did a lot of research on how to make this issue better. now i crush them and put them into capsules where i was able to order off amazon. It takes about a half hour for side effects to kick in so i assume its due to the capsules having to dissolve. I hope this helps because i would try to take them twice then say forget it when id choke them up. it was so bad at one point i spit up the pill along with the drink i was using all over my dogs. so i figured there had to be a better way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissaw72 Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 ^^There is lamictal ODT (disintegrating) one also ... I take them ... they dissolve in your mouth instantly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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