Common compounding questions

Veterinarians often have questions about compounded drugs. In an interview with dvm360, Lee Pope, DVM, a veterinary consultant with Revelation Animal Health, a division of Revelation Pharma, discusses some of the most common inquiries about pharmaceuticals for veterinary patients. By asking these questions, veterinarians are helping to ensure adherence to treatment plans and a more positive patient experience, leading to improved outcomes.

The following is a transcript of the video:

Lee Pope, DVM: Veterinarians will call and say, ‘Okay, this drug, can you make it into a liquid?’ Can you make it into a chewable tablet? Can you make it into a topical? So, basically, this is what we have FDA approved or are allowed to use. But can you make it in this different formulation for me?

Other requests: Will the pet take it? So it needs to be flavored. Is this flavoring good? Do cats take this flavoring? Do dogs take this flavoring? Do they approve of it? Can it be easily dosed?’ So, just because you can make a compounded into a medication, well, if you're trying to give a cat 15 milliliters of a liquid, nobody's going to be very excited to have to do that. So can it be easily dosed? Is it a volume that we can realistically give to our patient? Can we make scored tablets to where I can easily give a half a tablet, a quarter of a tablet, without turning it into dust?

Can I use this in the office? Can I have this for office use to dispense? Now, that will vary depending on the state, so you have to check with your local regulations on that.

And the last one for that, I would say, is basically quick shipping. How quick can we get this? This patient is here today. They're sick today. We're all inpatient people now. How quick can we get this medication and get the patient started on it?