Ralnea XL

I've just collected my repeat prescription from the chemist. I have been on ReQuip XL for about 2 months (was given it at the hospital) but have just collected Ralnea XL. I queried this with the pharmacist - she has looked it up and says it's the same as ReQuip but a cheaper version, but as it's made by a different company it may contain different ingredients and therefore may cause side effects ( I've been fine on my 6mg of Requip ) She said that if I experience any side effects with this then I should contact my doctor and insist on ReQuip. Apparently the hospital pharmacy is allowed to dispence ReQuip but not the high street chemist pharmacy ......all down to cost. (I do pay for my prescriptions!)

Has anyone else been in the same situation?
most of the info is in german
google ralnea retardtabletten

if they are using a different method of slow release the dose may last longer or shorter.
i couldn't find any info on the rate of release (pharmakokinetisch) as you need to register as a pharmacist to access it.

some people seem to have trouble with the ordinary ralnea but the xl version is quite different.
I've taken the Ralnes now for 2 days - third day today - and luckily had no side effects!
Good to hear that you have not had any adverse effects from taking Ralnea. Just keep a very close eye on things. My husband's Pharmacy just replaced Requip Xl with Ralnea without letting him know. After about five days the drug started to become less and less effective until after another five days he could hardly move. After a return to Requip XL, things improved immediately.

He now has Requip specified on his prescription to prevent this happening again.
neddie - did they give him ralnea xl or ordinary ralnea - chemists often get these mixed up. if ralnea xl then that proves they are not equivalent.

the uk pd population are being forced onto crap eastern european alternatives so the chancellor can give tax breaks to the super rich.

pinko turnip
It was Ralnea XL, clearly not the same as Requip XL. Initially my husband could not understand my concerns re generic drugs. He soon agreed with me.

Shows the lack of knowledge and understanding of Parkinson within Pharmacies giving out generic Parkinson drugs without warning patients. Anything to keep costs down!!! :imp:

In a Red Bolshy mood myself.
I was in this situation too, essentially Requip has come off its licence and can now be prescribed as a generic drug i.e ropinirole. (although they have now significantly reduced the cost of requip!!)

I found that when I was changed to Ralnea which is the generic version I had to increase the dose. My husband did some research and found that Requip was just simply better and manufactered to a higher standard. I discussed this with my consultant and he said I should stay on Requip as I had been on it for some time although he explained that new patients would be on the Ralnea.

I am now back on Requip and the only thing I can say is that for me personally, it does appear to be stronger although technically has the same dosage of ropinirole.
Neddie - thanks for the warning. I'm ok so far. but I'm only on 6mgs so maybe the risks are not so bad. I'll see how it goes in the next few days.
shakin - even if the active drug is exactly the same amount and quality, if the profile of the tablet's dissolving are different then different amounts of drug will be absorbed - much of slow release drugs are never absorbed. In many ways the delivery mechanism is more important than the actual drug.
I am having trouble with the Slovenian product = Ralmea XL mini versions of the side effects I had when ramping up from 2 to 8mg of Requip XL
I have been diagnosed for nearly 11 years and started taking Requip which has gradually increased and am now taking Requip XL 20mgs plus Madopar four times a day.
Have been very well controlled on this regime for a while, then 3 weeks ago when I collected my prescription the Requip XL had been changed to Ralnea XL - which is manufactured in Slovenia so obviously cheaper to produce. During the last 3 weeks I have felt increasingly uncontrolled with more dyskinesias , more detached,very tired and generally unwell. I made the connection 2 days ago and have been able to access some Requip XL and from Day 1 have felt an improvement.
I have found a few comments on the Forum but would be interested to hear if anyone else has had a similar experience.
hi i am taking 12mg of riquip and been on it for 5 yrs and tow times they gave me the cheap verson of it the frist time i was very up well when i took the cheap one it made me sleep a lot and sick headach s .then they gave it to me again i took it back and told them it wrong and they gave me requip now my husband checks it befor he leaves the doctors . the cheap one do not have the same ingerats as the requip and the requip gave me spending side afects too
can puk bring to the attention of the nhs the seeming crappiness of ralnea xls?
there is NO information published about its pharmakinetics , is there any proof iti s actually slow release at all???
PwP and their care partners may find postings on this well respected site useful :National Parkinson's Foundation. Go to the forum section where there is an Ask the Pharmacist section. Page 2 has a thread that addresses this very issue. I have found all this website 's forums useful. I think it is an U.S site.
ecd
had a look didnt find much. is there a link?
Sorry Turnip but I not know how to put a link on here. It is under the thread RequipV Ropinerole.
Also turnip you are very knowledgeable so what might be useful to others is old hat to you. I am not buttering you up,not my way. Just saying how I see things.
Hope weather is better in your part of the world. We are in the west of England and yesterday wes truly awful. We could not get through from our village to larger towns,either by rail or roads as both were flooded.h
hi ecd, you're thinking of parsnips! It is a useful site. Funny how lots of US doctors and pharmacists have pd but no UK ones :grin::grin: Rainy season here but not as rainy as England!