Has anyone else had problems with the generis MTX?? It was taking me a full day to recover from it. I felt "hung-over" all day. My rheumie switched me to Rheumatrex which is the original MTX. I feel much better. Rheumie thinks generic is too strong. I am down to 10mg a week from 12.5! Yippee!!What does the generic MTX look like? I have two prescriptions for MTX. One are tiny little orange pills and they don' seem to cause me as much trouble as the others which are yellow and oval shaped? My rheumy says there is no differnce but I feel there is.
Generic MTX are little orange pills. The original is round yellow pills. My rheumie felt that the orange might be a little stronger. I don't seem to have the same reaction "the hangover" with the yellow pillows. I was not the first patient to complain of this feeling.
I use the injectible MTX that is generic. I am suprised that there would be a difference in a generic and brand. There isnt supposed to be. Is one of them coated and one of them plain?
When I first went on the injectable mtx about 3 years ago I had absolutely no side effects. Then, about 18 months - 2 years ago there was a 'shortage' and there was none available anywhere in my area - New York metro. I finally found some at a little out of the way mom and pop pharmacy. But anyway, when it was available again from the mail-order pharmacy, it was changed to a no-preservative kind and suddenly I was nauseous, brain foggy, very tired, depressed for 2 full days following each injection. The only difference was that it was a generic product with no preservative in it.
Apparently quite a few people had a similar reaction. I can only take .3 ml (equivalent to 7.5mg) each week now. The mood swings and other stuff are just too disruptive to my life. I work full time and can't be alienating everyone 2 days every week. People get ticked off and I don't blame them! Doctor would prefer I be on .6 ml (15mg) but I won't take that much any more. Fortunately the RA seems to be 'on hold' with that much plus Plaquenil so I hope it lasts.
So - to answer your question - yes, the generics and different brands can DEFINITELY cause a different reaction. I have had the same thing happen when Prozac went off patent. The generic just didn't work for me and I am now on Lexapro and Effexor.
Cynthia
The generic pills are coated.I just wondered if it made a difference with how the pills are absorbed. I guess the diff. in the preservatives could make a difference for people too. I think it is an interesting subject, I never thought there was a difference between gen and brand. I always go for generic to save $$.