Dilantin Kapseal 100 mg users

Did you recently try to fill an rx for the dilantin kapseal 100 mg caps....and when you got the med it looked different? Before it was white with an orange band. Now it is half white and half orange. Is this the same med? Or is this some type of generic dilantin? Anyone know? Are the ingredients exactly the same? I called pfizer to ask them this and could not get a yes or no answer from them. That makes me feel distrustful.

Has anyone ordered Dilantin Kapseal and then get Phenytoin Sodium? The pharmacist said that the company that made Dilantin Kapseal went out of business...Don't know about that. Does anyone?

Steve wrote:

Has anyone ordered Dilantin Kapseal and then get Phenytoin Sodium? The pharmacist said that the company that made Dilantin Kapseal went out of business...Don't know about that. Does anyone?

I ordered Dilantin Kapseals and recieved Dilantin. But not the white cap with orange band. The bottle said Dilantin....but it only said Dilantin..not kapseals. And the caps were half orange and half white. Since my last post I again called Pfizer and this time got more info. First I asked if this was a generic and they said no it is not generic. Keep in mind that the bottle I got said Dilantin on it....just not kapseals. So if your bottle says only phenytoin...this might not apply to you. I then asked if they were going to stop making dilantin and they said no. They also said it was the shell that changed, but the contents of the cap is not changed. I asked if changing the shell would affect the dissolution. They said no it should work the same. And I asked if the cap will work the same as the dilantin kapseals. They said it is "bioequivalent". I asked why they changed it. They said they wanted to update it. So after this conversation I felt slightly more comfortable....but not entirely. So I am going to keep looking around for more info and talking to other dilantin users. The Pfizer number that I called is: 1-800-438-1985.

Noticed same and have felt disconcerted by it. Why would they want to "update it"? I will update if I find out any more info.

magdalena gana wrote:

Noticed same and have felt disconcerted by it. Why would they want to "update it"? I will update if I find out any more info.

I have not been able to find any further info since my last post. I was able to verify that the contents of the med are the same and only the shell has been changed. There are different ingredients in the shell. But I have not been able to find out if this will affect how the med dissolves in the body. And that is very important with this type of med. I have talked to people on two other message boards who recently began taking the new dilantin and so far they are doing ok. they have been taking it for several days ...so no news is good news.

I found this article on the new dilantin capsule. I was unable to post the entire article due to character limitation. But you can go to the link and read the entire article.

http://www.epilepsy.com/articles/ar_119393345...

Dilantin 100 mg capsules are undergoing a transformation. According to Pfizer, the Food and Drug Administration approved manufacturing changes for Dilantin®(phenytoin sodium). Given this change, which was noted in a September 23, 2007, letter to some pharmacists at the corporate level, we have compiled the following information about:
The product itself
The new Dilantin
Dilantin® 100 mg extended oral capsules (half orange and half white) are now being manufactured and will replace Dilantin Kapseal® 100 mg.– white with an orange band in the center — which are being discontinued.

The notice from Pfizer can be viewed at http://professionals.epilepsy.com/pdfs/PFZ_DI...

“As for how the ‘old’ Dilantin and the ‘new’
Dilantin compare with respect to absorption; there is again very little information available from Pfizer. The information that is available suggests that the two formulations are bioequivalent according to FDA standards, with perhaps the new formulation actually being slightly better absorbed, at least when taken on an empty stomach.”
He added,“Until we know more specifics, it would seem prudent that patients note when they begin taking the new formulation, and if they experience any change in either side effects or seizure frequency they should contact their physician.”
Edited by Steven C. Schachter, MD
Submitted: 11/01/07

The medication I was given is actually a generic manufactured by Taro. The pharmacist said that there was a big lawsuit becuase Pfizer changed the formulary on it so they are using this other brand. I told the pharmacist that I cannot take a genric form for an antiseizure drug. I had a problem with it once before and he outright lied to me and told me it never existed in genric form.
Anyone been switched to the Taro genric? I have very upset. Shouldn't the clinic have had my doctor talk to me about this before pulling a switcheroo on me?

linda: any idea where to get info on the pfizer lawsuit? I would like to follow it since I will soon have to start the "new" dilantin. who is suing pfizer? maybe I can use that to google it. thanks for any info.

just picked up my new rx for dilantin and was concerned about it being different as I have heard nothing about this change. I called my neurologist and he told me it was fine but just to make sure it is not generic. He seemed adamant about that. My only concern is why did they change this pill and why don't they explain the change. I can't understand why you would change a medication without any reasoning i.e. price etc. I only wish another pharmaceutical company made the original dilantin capsule. THERE HAD TO BE SOME REASON FOR THIS CHANGE!!! JUST TELL US!!!

Using "Dilantin Kapseal change" as a key, here's what I found.
http://search.yahoo.com/search...

If you notice, Pfizer says there is no change.

in going on-line it looks to me like this new Dilantin is being manufactured in Australia.
I never heard of a change of medication with so little knowledge exactly why the change, why being manufactured out of this country. It seems to be hush-hush. I got the feeling the MD's and pharmacists don't exactly know much about this change. This is my third day on the medication and I feel a little unsettled but as long as it contains the same amount of Dilantin in each pill, I can handle that. I just wish Pfizer would be a little more on the up and up. I think we should have a dilantin blood level after a couple of weeks on this medication to make sure it is within range. Pam

Dilantin 100 mg Kapseals change

Like most of you I've also been concerned about this and have not been able to get a straight answer from anyone until today. I received a letter from my HMO telling me that the name brand Dilantin that I'd been taking for years would no longer be available and that they were going to ask my doctor's permission to substitute the generic the next time my Rx was filled. I called the pharmacist and he told me that YES Dilantin 100 mg Kapseals have been reformulated and that the generic is actually closer in formulation to the old Dilantin then the new one is. That leaves me and a lot of others up a crick because the generic does not work for me. He said that he had no idea why Pfizer would do this to a drug that is so widely used and not offer an explanation. And why would the FDA approve such a thing? He also said that they only had 30 days notice about this. His advice to me was to see my neurologist and if the new Dilantin isn't going to work for me to maybe try switching to another med. My son-in-law also takes Dilantin and he's been on the new one for about a month now. Friday he had a grand mal seizure while driving and a second one in the ER. Fortunately he was in a parking lot and he was going very slow and he wasn't injured and no one else was involved. Later in the ER he had another seizure. Because of state law he looses his license for 6 months now which is a huge inconvenience to their young family. We now know that this is directly related to the changed Dilantin. Scary!!

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/9058...

I started today and have the same questions. the next couple of days will be the real test. i have taken this stuff over 30 years. The link above is 18 hrs old. I did not get much from it..
I did notice my urine much clearer than before .

Hi -

I am so glad to see others noticed this! I did and called my pharmacy to ask. They said it was the same drug, just manufactured differently. I have been on it for 1 week and have been fine.

But it is weird that they would just suddenly change it.

I have been on Dilantian & Phenobarb. for about 30 years. It still works fo me. I had went through a time when the Pharmacy was trying to give me capsiels that were light lavender& white.
They said it was a genric, but it didn't work. It took several days to get the right stuff.
The doctor wuldn't write anothe scrip, & the Pharmacy insisted he hd to & stipuate the name brand be used.
After fihting with bot for three days, I mentioned taking legal action to both.
With in one hour I had the right meds.

Sorry for yhe spelling mistakes, some of my keys don't like to work

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