Question:
Can I separation my antidepressant pills to save circulating medium?

From a reader:
My physician has prescribed Zoloft for my gloom. I heard you can preserve riches by splitting pills. Can I do that with Zoloft?

Answer:
Pill-splitting, although polemical, has be appropriate to a received way for people to preserve currency in continuance more prescription medications. In fact, some of the country's largest health insurers, such in the manner that UnitedHealth Group Kaiser Permanente and the Veterans Affairs Department, encourage their members to save money by dint of. splitting specific pills in moiety.


Splitting pills be able to save you money for the create that drug companies ofttimes lay at one's door a similar price during varying doses of medication. Recently, conducive to example, a plain online pharmacy charged $14.99 for 30 tablets of 50 mg of Zoloft (Sertraline) and $15.99 for 30 tablets of 100 mg of Zoloft. If your doctor has prescribed 50 mg of Zoloft, you can then purchase the larger draught, split the tablet in half and enjoy a savings of near $7.00 each month.

In a Shopper’s Guide to Prescription Drugs, Consumer Reports palaestra more threadbare medications that can be split in close custody, including: Cialis (Tadafil) Crestor (Rosuvastatin) Levitra (Vardenafil) Lipitor (Atorvastatin) Norvasc (Amlodipine) Paxil (Paraxetine) Pravachol (Pravastatin) Proscar (Finasteride) Synthroid (Levothyroxine) Toprol (Metoprolol) Viagra (Sildenafil) Zocor (Simvastatin) Zoloft (Sertraline) Zyprexa (Olanzapine) The following types of medications should not be part:
Capsules
Capsules may contain a liquid, powder, or tiny pellets. If the capsule is ache, the medication inside may spill and possess being impossible to divide evenly.

Extended-release medications
Extended-release, or long-acting medications have coatings or ingredients that control in what manner fast the drug is released from the pill. Splitting these tablets may cause too much of the drug to be released at one time, what one. may inducement perilous indirect personal estate.

Enteric-coated medicines
Enteric-coated pills have a special coating to prevent the release of medication into your stomach. This is designed either to protect your inclination from the deaden with narcotics or to preclude the physic from being destroyed by the acids in your abide.

Medicines that require an exact dose
Some medications require that you get exactly the same prescribed portion each time you take it. Even real small deviations can give rise to problems. Cutting these pills could result in a dose that is too low to be helpful or a dose that is dangerously aloft.
Pill-Splitting Tips Talk to your healthcare provider about splitting your prescription medication to find fully if it is safe and if a higher dose is available. Your provider will urgency to frame a prescription in opposition to the higher dose pill. Do not use a knife or razor blade to split pills. The safest and most trustworthy way is to use a pill splitter, that subsist able to require being purchased at your pharmacy. Buy one that has a clear cover and a V-shaped tip that allows for an exact placement of the pill. If you are not strong by what means to use the pill-splitting device, ask your druggist to show you in what manner. Split one pill at a time and take the pieces on consecutive days. This bequeath make certain that within a two-day period, you are taking an true dose. If you acquire unfruitful eyesight, tremors, arthritis in your hands, or a single one form of memory impairment, have a family head or confidant avoid you with pill splitting.More Drugs Q&A

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