About Compounding

Julie had many allergies including; lactose, gluten, corn, almonds, and dyes. Most commercial products resulted in producing as many health issues as they were meant to treat. Julie struggled with uncontrolled diarrhea dominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and due to her multiple allergies, she did not have the option of traditional commercial products to manage her symptoms. The pharmacy team at MD Custom Rx were able to work with her prescriber to identify therapeutic options based upon our knowledge of medications and excipients that cooperated with her individual biology and multiple sensitivities. We used this knowledge to find the prescription option that was most versatile, most likely to be efficacious, and most affordable.

Robert had been on antidepressant medication(s) for years and always desired to stop taking them but could never successfully stop. He found a wonderful functional medicine provider who helped him to heal many aspects of his health and his provider agreed that Robert is better equipped than he has ever been to “get off” of antidepressant medication. Robert starts to decrease his dose at the direction of his medical provider, but whenever he got down to a certain dose he got stuck. With the commercial strengths available, Robert could not further decrease his dose without experiencing adverse effects. After speaking with the pharmacist team at MD Custom Rx, Robert and his doctor decided to try a compounded liquid. With a liquid, Robert was able to make much smaller decreases in his dose and thus was able to tolerate continued dose decreases. With his compounded liquid, Robert felt in control and empowered to be able to make the tiny adjustments he was comfortable with and eventually he was able to stop the medication completely without experiencing any adverse effects.

Mary’s mother, Janet, had been admitted to hospice care to manage her end-of-life to make her the most comfortable after a long and strenuous battle with stomach cancer. Due to Janet’s condition and frailty, she suffered extreme nausea, but was unable to swallow or take medications by mouth. Luckily, Janet’s hospice team was experienced with a compounded preparation called ABHR Gel. ABHR Gel is rubbed into the patient’s wrists and does a wonderful job of controlling nausea and at the same time can help keep the patient calm and relaxed. ABHR Gel was prescribed for Janet to be compounded by our team and Mary expressed her gratitude for the small part we were able to play in helping her mother pass peacefully and comfortably. Peter had a previous dental surgery and ended up with his tongue moving involuntarily for periods of time. According to his wife, his tongue would scrape against his front teeth to the point of bleeding. Peter was in pain daily as his tongue would be routinely cut up and unable to heal. The compounding team at MD Custom Rx did work with Peter’s medical team to compound tetracaine lollipops to help manage his discomfort and provide necessary relief for the patient while the root cause was being identified. A simple medication but in a unique form is one of the ways a compounding pharmacy can be an effective part of health care.

Jack could no longer afford the topical, commercial gel that controlled his acne. Jack’s dermatologist reached out to the pharmacist team at MD Custom Rx to discuss what options were available. We were able to formulate a combination gel that not only contained the active ingredient in the commercial product Jack could not afford but combined it with three additional products that are efficacious in the treatment of acne and for skin integrity. And the compounded, combination preparation could be provided for 1/10 the price of the commercial product resulting in a win, win, win for the patient! For years Mira’s headaches were well controlled with a certain medication. The manufacturer discontinued making her headache medication and it became no longer available. The compounding team at MD Custom Rx was able to source ingredients almost identical to those that were in the commercial product and Mira’s prescriber agreed to prescribe the compounded version. She is so appreciative to be able to continue the headache relief she had grown accustomed to.