Abstract

It has often been claimed by sections of the pharmaceutical industry that brand-name preparations are more reliable than unbranded generic ones. If this is true it is serious, particularly when the dosage of a drug may be critical. Anticonvulsants are such drugs, and Consumers’ Association therefore bought samples of three widely used anticonvulsants - phenobarbitone, phenytoin and troxidone - and had them tested by a pharmaceutical laboratory for compliance with the British Pharmacopoeia standards. Samples of 50 – 200 tablets or capsules were obtained from retail and hospital pharmacists and included all the “name” brands, and samples from other suppliers that were most readily obtained in London.