Village Compounding Pharmacy focuses on meeting
a patient’s special needs. Many patients have
trouble taking certain medications in their
original form. One way we customize medications
is by altering the dosage form. There are many
ways to take a medication and we want to make
sure we can find the most effective outcome, if
that means changing how a prescription is
administered. We can make anything from cream
and gels to sterile injections. For example, if
a baby cannot take a pill orally, we can have
that pill made into a cream to rub and absorb
into the skin the area of treatment.
Our compounding pharmacist has received advanced
training in the preparation of customized dosage
forms to meet each patient’s specific needs. We
offer many unique options for pain management,
regardless of pain origin and whether pain is
acute or chronic. By working together with
patient, physician, and other members of the
health care team, we can individualize
medications and make necessary adjustments to
maximize pain relief.
Options include:
Oral Dosage Forms - are often preferred
due to convenience. We can combine numerous
compatible medications into a single dose for
ease of administration. However, conditions
including mucositis, impaired swallowing or
gastrointestinal obstruction may prevent the use
of oral medications.
Transdermal Therapy – absorption of medication
through the skin or mucosa – is an important
alternative to traditional methods of drug
delivery. The optimal dosage form depends upon
the specific needs of each patient. For example,
troches contain medication that is absorbed
through the mucosal lining of the cheeks as the
troche dissolves, instead of being absorbed by
the gastrointestinal tract like oral
preparations which are swallowed. Transdermal
gels have been known to be an effective method
of administering medications via absorption
through the skin, providing high local
concentrations below the site of application,
often without causing side effects associated
with systemic (oral) drug administration.
Medications absorbed transdermally bypass the
gastrointestinal tract and first-pass metabolism
by the liver. Therefore, significant amounts of
medication are not eliminated from the body
before the drug has a chance to reach target
tissues, and significant fluctuations that occur
when a person has liver disease are avoided.
Studies suggest that there are no great
restrictions on the type of drug that can be
incorporated into a properly compounded
transdermal gel.
Rectal Administration of suppositories or other
dosage forms may be preferable when patients
have nausea or vomiting, or are fasting other
preoperatively or postoperatively. This route is
not useful during episodes of diarrhea or for
inform patients who do not have reliable home
care providers.
Nasal Dosage Forms are useful alternatives, with
several medications currently being studied for
nasal administration.
Injectable (subcutaneous, intravenous)
medications should be used when simpler, less
demanding methods are inappropriate or
ineffective. Intramuscular injections should be
avoided in chronic pain patients because of
unreliable absorption, pain, and inconvenience.
Flavoring
Another area we focus on when changing the
dosage form of a medication is flavoring.
Because everyone has different taste buds, we
offer a wide variety of flavors. From chicken or
fish for cats to cherry flavoring for young
children, we want to make sure our patients are
satisfied with the taste of their medications.
Click on the link below to view a list of our
many flavors.
