TEVA Finasteride and Proscar

[Kinky Temples]

I tried to find threads about this but no luck...

I was wondering if anyone used the TEVA 5 mg generic finasteride. I youtube'd it but I wasn't able to get what I was looking for. Does anyone know if this is as easy to split as the Proscar? Does it crumble like hell?

This second question has been given mixed answers...is the finasteride evenly distributed in Proscar tablets? I swear I got like 5 yeses and 5 nos lol. Personally I don't see why it wouldn't, but say if the fin is 5 mg but the whole tablet is like...500 mg, I can see why there could be more potent areas, it may even be considerable, like .16 and 3.1....

[Mark]

I tried to find threads about this but no luck...

I was wondering if anyone used the TEVA 5 mg generic finasteride. I youtube'd it but I wasn't able to get what I was looking for. Does anyone know if this is as easy to split as the Proscar? Does it crumble like hell?

This second question has been given mixed answers...is the finasteride evenly distributed in Proscar tablets? I swear I got like 5 yeses and 5 nos lol. Personally I don't see why it wouldn't, but say if the fin is 5 mg but the whole tablet is like...500 mg, I can see why there could be more potent areas, it may even be considerable, like .16 and 3.1....

It's funny that you ask this because we were going over this exact issue a week or two ago in the office. (http://www.baldingblog.com/2009/01/06/is-finasteride-evenly-distributed-in-a-proscar-tablet/)

As you can read there, we weren't able to come up with any exact information from the manufacturer about the level of homogenization in a pill. However doing a little thought experiment, it doesn't seem like there would be different levels of the drug in each pill. Here is my reasoning.

These companies mix up huge batches of the powdered form of these drugs, and they tend to use some sort of a filler in them for certain purposes. For example, if you look at a Propecia pill and a Proscar pill, the Propecia pill is actually larger despite the fact that it only has 1/5th the amount of Finasteride in it. This means there is clearly a lot more of this filler substance (lactose monohydrate, microcrystalline cellulose, pregelatinized starch, sodium starch glycolate, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose LF, titanium dioxide, magnesium stearate, talc, docusate sodium, yellow ferric oxide, and red ferric oxide. (http://www.baldingblog.com/2009/01/05/propecia-allergy-and-a-swollen-throat/)).

My assumption about the manufacturing process on these pills is that they mix up a batch of powdered drug containing finasteride and the fillers listed above, they then take this powder and run it through a machine which compresses the powder under very high pressure, making a solid pill that doesn't crumble easily and can be swallowed.

Now, lets say that those companies mixed up their batch of powder and the mixture was not homogeneous. That would mean that you could have whole pills that contained almost no Finasteride, and you could have pills that have WAY more finasteride than they say they do. That would be a huge problem.

So basically, it's my opinion that they must have a homogeneous mixture in each pill, and therefore splitting them into quarters should provide you with about 1/4th the total amount of finasteride in pill.


I should stress that I don't work for Merck (or any other drug manufacturer for that matter), I don't know exactly how these pills are manufactured, and none of the information I've provided above is from an expert source. It's simply my own logical deduction. If you feel that I'm wrong about anything above, please feel free to critique my analysis.

-Mark

[Kinky Temples]

I'm sorry...I saw that question about it before. I just thought I can get someone else's input, and I'm happy I got your's, because I never thought of it that way, lol. I knew though it would be dumb because they'd have to make each pill individually which would obviously be a hassle, so they must be homo. In what case are drugs not though? Just wondering.

[Mark]

I'm sorry...I saw that question about it before. I just thought I can get someone else's input, and I'm happy I got your's, because I never thought of it that way, lol. I knew though it would be dumb because they'd have to make each pill individually which would obviously be a hassle, so they must be homo. In what case are drugs not though? Just wondering.

Your guess is as good as mine. If I get some time I'll try and find that out for you.

-Mark