Generics or branded pills? Demystifying the myths

When you are unwell and you seek medical attention from your doctor, often you will receive a prescription. With this prescription, you will either get generic or brand drugs to manage your condition. However, some patients may not be aware of the difference and those who do may harbour varied myths and misconceptions.

A brand or original drug is developed and marketed under a patent or registered trademark by a pharmaceutical company. Regulators give patent and exclusivity protection to brand manufacturers to allow them to recover costs from their innovation and research for several years.

On the other hand, a generic drug is an off-patent pharmaceutical product that has the same strength, dosage form, and route of administration as the branded drug. It also must have the same effect on the body, safety, and quality as the brand drug. Generics can only enter the market through a shortened regulatory approval process once the patent of the brand drug has expired.

One may therefore wonder, how generic drugs differ from original drugs? Generics are a chemical copy of the original brand, with the same active ingredients, but their inactive ingredients (excipients) may vary. One or the other may have slightly more or fewer types of excipients (fillers, binders, flavours, etc.) depending on their manufacturing process.

The cost of branded drugs is majorly determined by the number of years spent by the innovator companies in carrying out extensive research and development and brands have trademark protection. Lesser time and money are required in developing a generic drug since the innovator company has already discovered active ingredients and disclosed the excipients of that brand drug.

After the expiration of a brand drug patent, market competition between multiple generic companies typically results in a low price. Still, to ensure quality, the generic drug manufacturing companies must ensure that the drugs meet the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) quality standards like that of the branded drugs. The PPB through post-marketing surveillance (PMS) reports for both the generic and the branded medicine ascertains the quality and safety of these medications.

So, what would determine if I should buy generic drugs or brand drugs?

Some medications are only available as a brand. But if a medication has a generic version, you and your pharmacist/doctor can discuss the best option based on your clinical condition and affordability.

Finally, always purchase your medicines from a registered pharmacy/chemist as you are more likely to get authentic medication.

Dr Jaimini Gohil, is the chief pharmacist and Dr Reuben Mogo a clinical pharmacist at Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi