There seems to be a shortage of Amantadine. Anyone know why or what the supply situation is?
Hi Suffolkchris,
Thank you for alerting us to this, it is something our helpline has received calls on too.
I am trying to check up with the drug company who manufacture the drug what the situation is and when/if it can be resolved.
I will let you know something as soon as I do.
Thanks,
Leo
As promised... we have word from them that they are temporarily out of stock of the drug due to a manufacturing delay. They anticipate stock being available again by, at the latest, week commencing 9th June 2014.
We have asked them to explain the reasons for the manufacturing delay and are waiting on their response.
I hope this is helpful! We will keep an eye on the situation in case it isn't resolved.
Thanks Leo, I contacted them too and was told that the latest batch failed final inspection and had to be scrapped. Very worrying that supply chain has no slack or stock to accommodate a problem with supposedly just one manufacturing batch! Especially as Amantadine is a drug you should not suddenly stop taking but should slowly titrate. My dispensary were advised delivery w/c 2nd June. If the drug company are now saying 9th June it looks like the problem may not yet be resolved!!
Chris
My pharmacist (who is usually very good at tracking down supplies ...) has today been unable to find any supply of Amantadine.
Is there any news from your contact at the manufacturer?
Nigel
Hi Nigel,
I have just called the manufacturer again and they said that the drug should be available for pharmacists to order as of yesterday. Do you want to private message me and tell me where abouts in the country you are?
This might be useful to ascertain whether this is a local or national problem..
Thanks,
Leo
Hi , Hubby is on a combination of PD DRUGS one of which is Amantadine . Have been waiting since 5th May for his latest prescription of this drug to be filled . Last week we phoned around 6 pharmacist and managed to find a chemist with 28 capsules so we got a new prescription from the Doctor and went and picked them up .
Today Hubby had a phone call from the Doctor to say that there were no more Amantadine in circulation .. so the next prescription that he has will not include them .. He's been told to see how he goes without them . As a Nurse I know that you cannot just withdraw the medication so I have told him to go from his normal two a day to one a day.
I find it totally unacceptable that the suppliers can just stop supplying medication without any prior warning .
Will be interested to hear when and if the medication becomes available again as we will be be first down the Doctor demanding a new prescription.
We live in Devon
Lesley
I live in Oxfordshire and my pharmacy phoned me yesterday to say that they have managed to get i months supply of Amantadine for me , but it is only strictly one order per month.
I
I was given one packet by my pharmacy yesterday which will last me only two week! No indication of when I will get any more. Amantadine is a very dangerous drug to suddenly stop taking! What are Parkinsons UK doing to establish a more accurate supply situation Leo?
Is Steve Ford aware of this shortage Leo??
Thank you all for the information.
This is a totally unacceptable situation and we are still talking to the manufacturers to get a clear understanding of why this is happening.
Steve Ford is away at a conference this week in Stockholm so unless he has been informed by a clinician there, then I don't think he will know yet. I have alerted our professional engagement and helpline teams and depending on how long this issue last we may take up campaigning work.
Please do keep me informed of the situation as it progresses (both positive and negative updates will be usefu)l.
Rest assured, we will be trying to get to the bottom of this from our end!
I don't know what is going on, as I have the same problem with Selegiline. The pharmacist told me last week that he was unable to get any. He has still not managed to get any.
Thankfully I had not started the course yet, as it would be extremely dangerous to stop these drugs suddenly, once started, as Suffolkchris rightly pointed out above.
Thanks for your response Leo. I think the situation is that no one in the supply chain holds any buffer stock. With only circa 150,000 pwp in the UK the average patient number per GP is less than 2. So correspondingly local pharmacies are each dispensing relatively low quantities of second line PD drugs like Amantadine and Selegiline and holding little if any stock. So as soon as there is any problems with manufacture there is an immediate shortage to patients. Amantadine was approved originally as an anti viral drug but is rarely used for that purpose now. I don't think there are any generics either. Apparently it is dangerous to suddenly stop taking Amantadine!! When there was a manufacturing hiatus (production moved to a different location) for Siinemet a couple of years back the resultant shortage impacted the availability of Madopar too. But at least there are generics for these albeit that they work less effectively for some patients. For most pwp it takes a far bit of time for their bodies to adapt to a manageable drug regime and the consequences of sudden shortages can be dire. I get severe dystonia without my Amantadine and can hardly walk. Increasing my Ldopa just worsens my Dyskinesia and does nothing for the Dystonia. I could selfishly try to build up a horde myself but that would not help others who might be less aware of the issues and more trusting of the supply system. I am sure this is a problem that not only applies to PD drugs. It is an increasingly worrying issue that urgently needs addressing.
I have on more than one occasion had to suffer a pompous lecture from the pharmacy assistant when I have inadvertently let drop the fact that I have plenty of PD drugs in hand. Now I wonder why I feel the need to do that?!?! My advice to anyone is, if possible, not to start taking any long-term drug until you have a month in hand. Saves a lot of unnecessary worry. There seems to be a complete failure of the imagination on this score on the part of those who do not themselves depend on medication to function normally.
Hi Leo, I live in Caterham in Surrey and I have just been informed by my GP and my Pharmacist that there is no Amantadine available. My GP has advised me to reduce my intake to minimise any withdrawal symptoms. Do you have any updates?
Hi Guys,
Hope you don't mind me popping by I found you by googling Amantadine Manufacturing issue.
I have MS so the drug for me pretty much keeps me awake.
Anyways I have been told today while searching where I live for the drug, the issue should be resolved in July. I am hoping this will be the beginning of July over the end. Or I personally will be asleep on my desk!
Claire
I have been struggling for over a month now to get my Amantadine . Pharmacy has given me a syrup instead of tabs . It is difficult getting the dose right and the bottle is a sticky mess on the outside after a while .
They are only giving me 10 days supply - reasons unknown - but I keep getting told it is only a short term problem. I am in Aberdeenshire .I am flying in a weeks time so will have all the problems of taking liquids on board aircraft .
How long is this short term problem going to last ?
Hi all,
~Sorry for the slow response. We are still hearing that it is a problem with the wholesalers which is delaying things. The manufacturers of the drug assure us they are still producing it and the problems should be resolved by July. We will keep you updated if anything changes.
I'm sorry i couldn't bring any new information to the table, but we are still checking in regularly with the manufacturer.
Thanks,
Leo
Hello,
At the risk of being pushy, this situation doesn't appear to have reached the papers or tv. I may be wrong, but if it hasn't reached them,surely a press release should have been made.
Sorry for beiing abrupt,but that's how my meds leave me today
Equa
Trying to delete duplicate
don't think I've managed
sorry
To date, I have still not been able to obtain Selegiline. What is going on? It is lucky that I had not started on it yet, otherwise I don't know what damage stopping it abruptly would have done to me.
Is the situation now better with Amantadine?
I agree with Equa. Perhaps the time has come to alert the media over the shortage of this important medication for Parkinson's sufferers.
Regards