High-Quality Compounded Medications
The modern age of compounded medications has officially existed since the 19th century with the isolation various compounds from coal tar for the purpose of producing synthetic dyes. One product of coal tar was the earliest antibacterial sulfa drugs made by Joseph Lister and phenolic compounds. They were also used to create plastics.
Pharmacy Compounding
Pharmacy compounding is a type of medication which is customized for each patient by combining the ingredients from several available medications. It includes all types of medications, from antibiotics to hormones. The most common example of a pharmacy compounding is the production of a custom dose or form of an existing medication with a physician’s prescription.
In the United States today, most compounded medications are produced in commercial facilities. These production centers are overseen by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Historically, however, medications were mixed by independent pharmacists for use by individual patients.
Traditional Pharmacy Compounding
Compounding Pharmacy Oversight
Morbidity and mortality can often happen due to contamination of compounded medications with bacteria, fungi, or another prescription medication. Another way is if the concentration dispensed does not match what was intended. After a recent outbreak of contaminated topical steroids, the topic of patient harm caused by compounded medications has been widely discussed.
About Dr. Peter Koshlan
Today’s guest, Peter Koshland, PharmD, opened his compounding pharmacy, Koshland Pharm, in 2009 in San Francisco and works with doctors and patients on individualized, integrative therapies that make a difference in the quality of patients’ day-to-day lives. Peter has seen the profound impact high-quality compounded medicine can have, so producing the absolute best patient outcomes is what drives his decisions as CEO of Koshland Pharm. When he is not in the pharmacy, Peter spends his time consulting with and educating doctors about the multiple applications of compounded medicine in their respective fields.
Interview topics:
- Compounding for hormone replacement, dermatology, urology, thyroid disorders, and pain management
- Why big pharma is lobbying against bio-identical HRT
- How bias against compounding pharmacies could limit the options available to doctors treating patients
- The economic impact that FDA overreach could have on pharmacists across the country
- The importance of custom tailoring hormone treatments instead of using a “one size fits all” approach
NCBI online Journal, Published online 2020 Nov 2, article titled: Pharmaceutical Compounding: a History, Regulatory Overview, and Systematic Review of Compounding Errors.
