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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
Thanks for any info you can provide.
Posted by Anyuser on August 8, 2002, at 14:40:44
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
My doctor tells me that WB SR is identical "inside" to the old WB. That the slow release, sustained release, whatever it's called, comes from the coating. That if the coating is split, what you're left with is old WB.
I don't know the truth, myself. I don't trust my doctor any farther than I can throw him.
Posted by allisonm on August 8, 2002, at 20:44:35
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
From what I have read elsewhere, if you split the SR pills you will be breaking the special coating and you will lose the slow release benefit (or whatever the SR acronym stands for ... sustained release?...)
Good luck.
Posted by terra miller on August 8, 2002, at 23:55:17
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
if you split the tablets, it loses the sustained release effect. can you talk to your doc about needing to increase?
terra
Posted by inertia on August 9, 2002, at 13:17:27
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
> Thanks for any info you can provide.
For what it's worth, my psychopharmacologist said he spoke to the drug rep for the company that markets Wellbutrin and was told that you CAN split the tablets in half as long as you take the tablets within 24 hours after cutting them. He said that most time-released drugs can't be split (e.g. Concerta, extended release "Ritalin"), but Wellbutrin is different.
I trust my psychopharmacologist and he says he rarely needs to prescribe a dose that requires splitting tablets, but he has done it with a few pt's in the past.
Of course, he did get this info from the drug rep and not the company, but he still feels it's safe and effective to do.
I guess the best idea is to call the company yourself and ask them. I suppose there's a phone number on the package insert.
Posted by inertia on August 9, 2002, at 16:01:20
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
> Thanks for any info you can provide.
I HAVE TO CORRECT WHAT I WROTE in my last posting. I just read the package insert for Wellbutrin SR and it says, "It is important to swallow Wellbutrin SR tablets whole. Do not chew, divide, or crush tablets."
Of course, the package inserts also give maximum doses for drugs that are often exceeded in the "real world." So they may just be covering their backsides.
However, I'm very sorry for putting out information that wasn't researched better. As I said, I was just repeating what my pdoc told me. I had only the best intentions.
Posted by BekkaH on August 9, 2002, at 20:49:31
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
I was told by a psychopharmacologist that Wellbutrin SR CAN be cut; however, once you cut it, it is no longer sustained/slow release. Once you cut it, it becomes immediate release. Again, a psychopharmacologist told me this. I did not read it in the medical literature or in any package inserts printed by the pharmaceutical company.
Posted by Darby on August 9, 2002, at 23:37:04
In reply to Can wellbutrin SR be split to increase dose?, posted by ant-rock on August 8, 2002, at 14:17:04
The coating has NOTHING to do with sustained release properties; the pretty colors distinguish dose. The extended release formulation is completely mixed with the bupropion hcl in the substance of the tablet. Splitting the SR tablet delivers a smaller dose, extended release intact.
My MD is a consultant for Glaxo/Smith/Kline. He assures me it's perfectly ok.
Darby
This is the end of the thread.
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