flop Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 I have been taking fludrocortisone for POTS for several years. It has always been the "Florinef" brand that I have been given, small salmon-pink tablets, round with flat edges.The last two times that I have taken my prescription to the pharmacy I have been given a new formulation of fludrocortisone (I don't know the brand name as it is re-bottled by the pharmacy to give me 84 tablets). The new tablets are white and are round but with curved tops/bottoms and a score line on them. I'm not too fussed about what the tablets look like so long as they aren't huge and work properly for me.My Mum picked up the first of these new prescriptions and was very suprised to be told by the pharmacist that these new fludrocortisone tablets have to be stored in the fridge as they are not properly stable at room temperature. I thought this sounded very odd so I went to a different pharmacy, where I was told the same "they have to be kept in the fridge".I am keeping my fludrocortisone in the fridge now but it is a disaster for remembering to take them each morning. All of my pills are in a daily pill box with 4 compartments, at bedtime I put it next to my alarm clock with a glass of water so that I can take my tablets before getting out of bed (then put the rest of the day's pills into my hand-bag). I keep forgetting to get the tablets out of the fridge so am often missing my doses of fludrocortisone which can't be good for getting the med to work properly.Has anyone else had this change with their florinef tablets?Flop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MightyMouse Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 The last time I bought some (maybe a year or two ago), the tablets were a generic, and were a pale yellowish/white with a score line as you describe. However, I was never told to store them in the fridge. Interesting.nina Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunfish Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 someone else brought this up not too long ago as well. here's the link to the post: http://dinet.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtop...florinef+fridgei haven't taken florinef in years but it was a white scored generic when i took it at times & never had to refrigerate it. i doubt they'd be telling you to do so if there was no merit in it but there may be some flexibility in the directive. all of my meds or liquid (or i have to make them such) so there tend to be more liquids that dictate refrigeration. same with some of the IV meds i'm juggling. considering i'm not always able to get to the fridge myself & currently have to take things more than 9 times a day around the clock i've inquired/ researched extensively on each and the specifics vary greatly. just for example sake, i found out one of my meds only required refrigeration to preserve the flavor! seeing that my J tube doesn't have taste buds, that wasn't something i had to be concerned about it. some others only require refrigeration in the long term, i.e. if going to be stored over 14 days. others can be out without problem for 24 hrs (as long as not in a super hot environment), etc, etc. you get the idea. liquids don't work too well in pill cases but in a similar fashion i have mine in premeasured syringes in daily bags & do so weekly. after finding out the more detailed info re: refrigeration i'm still able to do this with all of my daily meds (other than my IVs). there are some i'm on at times that do need the fridge, but for the most part even my meds that need to stay in the fridge over time can be out for a week which helps immensely with my organization & sanity!i realize this is more than you needed to know about my med regimen but guess i just wanted to encourage you (and others) to research the issue further b/c it may not be a completely black & white issue, i.e. the bottle may need to stay in the fridge but you may be okay to fill up your bedside organizer weekly or at the very least perhaps have a pill there overnight so it's ready for you in the morning.hope this helps, melissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maggy Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 Hi,I have also been taking the pink round Fludrocortisone which did not have to be stored in the fridge,My daughter has just been prescribed exactly the same prescription as myself and yes hers are white tablets to be stored in the fridge.I spoke to the pharmacy who said it would be fine to take the days dosage out of the fridge to be carried round in her daily container as long as it was not kept in extreme heat.The reason for the change is the white brand is cheaper.Lets just hope it is as effective.Im sure we shall soon find out .Maggy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattsmum Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 My florinef tablets were never pink. Always white and always have to be stored in the fridge.When our fridge started to over freeze stuff i told my hubby that we needed a new fridge cos my meds have to be kept at the right temperature <evilgrin>New fridge looks great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flop Posted January 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 Thanks for all the replies. Sorry I forgot about the thread last month and ended up duplicating the topic - I do now remember reading it but my brain-fogged memory had forgotten again!It must be something to do with the white tablets but it is a real pain. I wonder if I can get my doctor to specify the pink tablets that don't need refrigeration. I'll have to do some investigating about how long they can be out of the fridge for, if I could put them out 12 hours before I take them it would help as I might be more likely to remember in the evening than in the morning when I am feeling wobbly and forgetful.Flop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenna Posted January 8, 2008 Report Share Posted January 8, 2008 My son takes the white Florinef pills (Fludrocortisone) and there is nothing on the label to indicate that it should be stored in the frig. I just called the pharmacist and he looked it up. He said that the pills are manufactured by a company called Global, which is a division of Impaxi Labs in Philadelphia. Global's instructions are to keep the pills at a temperature between 59-86 degrees - room temp. I suggest that if anyone has questions, they should call their pharmacist. Perhaps there are variations in the manufacturing of these pills.-Lenna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelika_23 Posted January 9, 2008 Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 I take the white fludrocortisone pills by Global and I have never been directed to refrigerate them, either. Guess I will be calling the pharmacist tomorrow.Angela Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flop Posted January 9, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2008 I wonder what brand my white fludrocortisone tablets are? There might be more than one generic, if I can find one that doesn't need refrigeration it would make things much easier!Flop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flop Posted January 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2008 I went to the pharmacy today with my repeat prescription for Fludrocortisone. I specifically asked about the colour change from pink to white, what brand they were, if they needed to be in the fridge and if there were any generics.The interesting answer was that the white pills are the brand-name "Florinef" made by Bristol-Meyers Squibb. They used to make the pink tablets but they have changed the formulation so now they are white and need to be kept 2-8 degrees centigrade.Apparently in the UK there is no generic available at all so all UK patients are going to be stuck having to refrigerate their pills. I asked about leaving it out of the fridge overnight but was advised to either get a mini fridge in the bedroom or use a cool-bag with ice packs to keep the tablets cold overnight so they don't loose their potency.Grrrr, how annoying!Flop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia3 Posted January 10, 2008 Report Share Posted January 10, 2008 Sorry flop...we need a converter for temperatures between UK and US. I do not know what those centrigrades meant.Sure is confusing about the meds, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunfish Posted January 10, 2008 Report Share Posted January 10, 2008 sophia - simple conversion is double the celcius plus 25. it's not 100% accurate but it's very close to give you a general idea, i.e. 8 C is approx. 41 F.hope this helps, melissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flop Posted January 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2008 Sorry,I forgot that the USA uses Fahrenheit not celcius/centigrade.There is a very handy way of doing any sort of number conversion (including currency conversion) using Google.On the main google search page if you type in "2 centigrade in Fahrenheit" and click "search" it will tell you the answer. 2 centigrade = 35.6 Fahrenheit8 centigrade = 46.4 Fahrenheit (basically it means keep it in the fridge).Flop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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