Compounding pharmacists are committed to helping their patients live healthier, better lives —and key to this is ensuring their patients have continuing access to lawfully prescribed, personalized medications tailored to their individual needs.

In February, the FDA approved the first and only oral treatment for eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) that contains the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) budesonide at a strength of 2 mg/10mL, which may sound familiar to many compounders.1 How does this affect compounders and what other potential options are available to patients?

The PCCA Research & Development (R&D) team constantly explores innovative ways to help meet the unique needs of patients. Using a multi-disciplinary approach, we developed SubMagna SL HMW, a self-emulsifying, sublingual delivery system, to accommodate a wide range of drugs with varying molecular weights — including those with a high-molecular weight. This innovative base is another way PCCA helps to fill the unmet needs of patients, prescribers and compounding pharmacies.

At PCCA, we proudly partner with our members to support the unique needs of your patients and prescribers through the science of compounding. We also recognize the importance of effectively communicating the value of compounded medications. As we navigate this path, it is crucial to adhere to established guidelines and embrace best practices in promoting your compounded medications.

Imagine having a clinical support team on-call 24/7, who is able to resolve tricky formula issues, research literature for new compounding developments, provide marketing and business support, and navigate esoteric government agency regulations. If you’re a PCCA member with clinical services access, you don’t have to imagine it — this “extension of your pharmacy staff” already exists! Members without clinical services access may not know what they’re missing — all for just $27 a day.

Administering medications to veterinary patients can be a challenging task for owners. Palatability issues with bitter drugs is very common and masking the taste of these drugs can be difficult. The logistics of simply giving an oral medication to pets often exacerbate existing challenges. However, delivering medications through the skin using permeation-enhancing vehicles may provide welcomed options for veterinarians and their patients, and serves as a prime example of how compounding shines by offering alternative delivery systems.

As compounders, we work with a variety of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), some of which are more challenging to compound than others. Compounding with methylene blue as an API has risen due to emerging research for a variety of clinical applications. However, methylene blue can be intimidating to compound due to its intense blue color, which may stain costly lab equipment, countertops and other materials. Discover some useful techniques that can ease the sometimes stressful process of working with this vibrant API.

Vulvodynia, a condition shrouded in mystery, affects 7% of American women and many times is misdiagnosed as vaginitis.1 The chronic vulvar pain disorder — often described as itching, burning or stabbing sensations — presents symptoms ranging from persistent discomfort to pain during intimacy.2 To better assist patients, we will explore the signs and symptoms of vulvodynia, illuminate the connection with pelvic floor dysfunction and discuss various ways to help patients: topical medications, pelvic floor physical therapy and the intriguing world of acupuncture.

Although January is National Thyroid Month, our Clinical Services team gets a lot of queries throughout the year on managing thyroid patients, including those with autoimmune conditions such as Graves’ disease (GD) and Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT). While thyroid clinical management may seem complicated, understanding some basics of thyroid physiology and the pathophysiology of these autoimmune diseases may help make a difference in patients’ lives.

Getting involved in wound care can be a very rewarding clinical niche. Many medical practitioners have limited experience and training in treating wounds, so when pharmacists have knowledge and compounded options to share, it is usually greatly appreciated. Understanding the pathophysiology of wounds and the pharmacology of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) used in wound treatment are needed to interact with prescribers and to formulate a patient-specific compound.