Russian analogues of imported drugs: an adequate replacement? Cheap Russian Analogs of Medicines - Expensive and Imported Analogues of Medicines

The price of a drug does not always determine its quality; it is not always possible to understand why the consumer should overpay a large sum when the active component of a medicine prescribed by a doctor can be found under a less well-known name. Almost every expensive drug has a generic: its analogue in terms of action and chemical composition. You should always have a list of such tools at hand.

It should be noted that a 100% guarantee of the correctness of such a replacement cannot be given. The same active and auxiliary components may be present in different proportions, have different degrees of purification, etc. A number of expensive medications may turn out to be safer due to certain ingredients that mitigate side effects, while a budget generic does not have them. In particular, this applies to antibiotics that have a negative effect on the body. Therefore, experts warn that any replacement, even with a generic and not an analogue, is carried out at the patient’s own risk, unless it has been discussed with the attending physician.

We bring to your attention a table of cheap analogues of expensive drugs with prices current for 2016. It should be said that only budget drugs whose cost does not exceed 150 rubles are included here, i.e. when the price difference really matters. Figures may vary depending on point of sale.

Main drug

Budget generic

Indications for use

Ambroxegal (110 rub.)

Ambroxol (50 rub.)

A drug that promotes the removal of sputum. Used to treat wet cough, bronchitis in any form, pneumonia.

Aspirin-cardio (RUB 125)

CardiASK (35 rub.)

An analgesic that relieves fever and stops the inflammatory process. Used for angina pectoris, for the prevention of stroke and heart attack, circulatory disorders in the brain, thromboembolism.

Bepanten (280 rub.)

Dexpanthenol (140 rub.)

An ointment that triggers regenerative processes. It is used to restore the skin due to burns and wounds, to treat boils, dermatitis, and trophic ulcers.

Voltaren (400 rub.)

Bystrumgel, Fastum-gel (200 rub.)

Ketoprofen (60 rub.)

NSAIDs, analgesic, anti-inflammatory agent. Relieves fever. Used externally as an ointment for injuries and joint damage.

Diflucan (800 rub.)

Fluconazole (40 rub.)

An antifungal drug used in therapy against thrush, mycosis, histoplasmosis, cryptococcosis.

For nose (100 rub.)

Rinostop (30 rub.)

Zyrtec (350 rub.)

Ranitidine (50 rub.)

Antiulcer agent.

Zovirax (240 rub.)

Acyclovir (40 rub.)

An antiviral drug that helps eliminate herpes, smallpox and lichen.

Immunal (200 rub.)

Echinacea extract (50 rub.)

An immunostimulating agent used to prevent viral infections, in combination with antibiotics to support the body.

Kapoten (120 rub.)

Captopril (15 rub.)

Antihypertensive drug, ACE inhibitor. Used in the combined treatment of heart failure, hypertension of any etiology, after myocardial infarction and diabetes mellitus with kidney damage.

Mezim (300 rub.)

Pancreatin (30 rub.)

Replenishes enzyme deficiency, helping the pancreas digest heavy foods more easily.

Maxidex (120 rub.)

Dixamethasone (40 rub.)

Glucocortecosteroid, used for endocrine diseases, cerebral edema, bronchial spasms, blood diseases, anaphylactic shock, rheumatism.

Midriacil (360 rub.)

Tropicamide (120 rub.)

It is used for inflammatory processes of an ophthalmological nature, for examining the fundus of the eye, and in therapy after operations.

Movalis (410 rub.)

Meloxicam (80 rub.)

NSAIDs, which relieve inflammation, fever and pain, can also be used in the treatment of the musculoskeletal system.

Normodipine (620 rub.)

Amlodipine (40 rub.)

Reduces blood pressure, used for vasospastic angina.

No-Shpa (150 rub.)

Drotaverine (30 rub.)

Antispasmodic, indicated for spasms of the digestive tract, brain, uterus, headaches, and urolithiasis.

Nurofen (120 rub.)

Ibuprofen (20 rub.)

NSAIDs that relieve fever and pain. It is on the list of essential drugs.

Omez (180 rub.)

Omeprazole (50 rub.)

It is used in antiulcer therapy, as well as for Zollinger-Ellison syndrome.

Panangin (170 rub.)

Perineva (310 rub.)

Perindopril (RUB 120)

ACE inhibitor used for ischemia, hypertension, heart failure, after stroke.

Sanorin (140 rub.)

Naphthyzin (15 rub.)

Nasal drops that have a vasoconstrictor effect. Used to treat sinusitis, rhinitis, and during operations of the nasal cavity.

Sumamed (450 rub.)

Azithromycin (90 rub.)

An antibiotic of semi-synthetic origin, used for infections of the respiratory tract, skin, soft tissues, and digestive tract.

Troxevasin (220 rub.)

Troxerutin (100 rub.)

Flucostat (200 rub.)

Fluconazole (30 rub.)

An antifungal drug used in the fight against candidiasis of any type, mycosis of the skin, cryptococcosis.

Finalgon (320 rub.)

Capsicam (140 rub.)

An ointment with a local irritant effect, used for pain in muscles and joints caused by injuries or rheumatism.

Enap (110 rub.)

Enalapril (55 rub.)

Necessary for the treatment of hypertension of any ethnology and heart failure.

Even if you do not know the exact name of the generic of an expensive medicine prescribed to you, you can look at its active ingredient - there is a high probability that the budget analogue will have exactly the same name. For example, this scheme shows its effectiveness with acyclovir, potassium iodide, panthenol, fluconazole, etc.

They cost several times, you need to understand the system for creating and selling medicines. Original drugs are the first to appear on the pharmaceutical market. The factory spends a huge amount of money on developing the drug and eventually receives a patent for production and distribution. As a rule, the validity period of a patent is 10 years. During this time, no one has the right to create medicines.

Once the patent expires, the drug becomes available to everyone. It is from this moment that the creation of analogues begins.

Thus, it turns out that the original drug costs many times more because it has been tested by people for 10 years. In addition to the costs of developing the drug, huge amounts of money were also spent on refining and improving it.

What are the differences between cheap analogues of expensive drugs?

Firstly, it is worth noting that not all analogues have a completely identical composition to the original. Most often, only the active substance is identical. But besides it, the medicine also contains additional elements responsible for the delivery of the substance, its absorption into the body and activation. But it is thanks to additional substances that some drugs act as quickly as possible.

As a rule, large pharmaceutical companies care about the high quality of raw materials. It also takes a lot of money to process and clean it. Cheap analogues very often contain substances of poor quality, imported from India and Eastern Europe.

You can also notice that using the original, the patient gets back on his feet in a matter of days, but there is no effect from taking generics. And although, at first glance, the compositions of these two drugs are the same, the effect is different. This is because research was carried out on the originals for 10 years under exclusive rights. There may simply be a tiny difference in composition that cannot be calculated or standardized, as a result of which the effectiveness of the original has become much higher.

What to take? Original or analogue

First of all, you need to look at the severity of the disease. If a person’s life depends on a medicine, then there is no point in experimenting. It is better to take a time-tested drug. If the disease is not critical, then you can try taking an analogue. There is a possibility that the generic will have a similar effect on the body as the original, and will cost an order of magnitude less.

It is important to remember which analogues did not work before. Most likely, if you purchase them again, they will also not give any effect.

Generics, this wonderful English word (generic), is called analogue of medicine, which is sold under an off-patent name. Thus, a generic is an interchangeable medicine that differs only in name, but has the same composition, the same active substance and has the same therapeutic effect. Our task is not to delve into the legal terminology associated with generics, but to find out what cheap analogues of expensive drugs exist.

What is the easiest way to identify interchangeable drugs? The answer is simple: find, on the Internet, the main active ingredient of the medicine and its quantity (volume) in the drug and compare the analogues offered by pharmacists and doctors.

It has long been no secret that many doctors feed on the medications they prescribe to patients. Often doctor's share, which he receives from the pharmacy, is more than 30% of the cost of the drug. Thus, the catchphrase “saving drowning people is the work of the drowning people themselves” becomes more relevant than ever.

Therefore, friends, do not chase brands, visit at least 2 doctors with your problem, of course, without telling about the diagnosis and treatment regimen proposed by the previous doctor. Take the time to read the annotation for the drug, find the main active ingredient of the drug, and you will find at least 2-3 cheap analogues of the expensive drug. Below are tables of interchangeable drugs or domestic generics.

In the table comparing interchangeable drugs, the price of the drug was not specifically indicated, since prices are not stable and change depending on market conditions, exchange rates and other micro and macroeconomic factors. For this reason, instead of the price of a generic drug, the ratio of the price of an expensive drug and its domestic analogue is indicated.

Table of drug analogues:

In conclusion, I would like to note that do not self-medicate, be sure to consult a doctor, preferably several, about taking this or that medication.