Generic Allegra

Allegra provides the effective non-drowsy relief of symptoms associated with seasonal allergic rhinitis in adults and children 6 years of age and older: sneezing, itchy nose, throat, and watery, red eyes. Allegra is an antihistamine. Histamine is a chemical in your body that causes allergy symptoms. Allegra helps block the effect of histamine and relieves the allergic symptoms. Relief of allergy symptoms may begin in as little as 60 minutes. The Allegra family is available in a variety of dosages, but we only offer 180mg tablets taken once a day which can be taken with or without food. This dosage is for people 12 and older. Side effects with Allegra 180 mg for seasonal allergies are low and may include headache, cold, or back pain.

• Do not take Allegra if you have ever had an allergic reaction to it.
• Before taking this medication, tell your doctor if you have any serious illness such as heart, kidney, or liver disease. You may require a dosage adjustment or special monitoring during treatment if you have other illnesses.
• Allegra is in the FDA pregnancy category C. This means that it is not known whether Allegra will harm an unborn baby. Do not take this medication without first talking to your doctor if you are pregnant.
• It is also not known whether Allegra passes into breast milk. Do not take Allegra without first talking to your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.
• Allegra is not approved for use by children younger than 6 years of age.

A generic version of the prescription allergy drug Allegra (fexofenadine) is now available at pharmacies around the country. Fexofenadine is one of four antihistamines, a class of drugs widely used to treat allergies, hay fever, and hives.

A report on the antihistamine medicines was posted on this Web site in August 2005. That report refers to Allegra as a brand-only drug, with no generic available. In September, two generic companies teamed to announce the launch of generic fexofenadine. The drug comes in three dosage strengths - 20mg, 60mg, and 180mg. All three are available as generic tablets.

Prices for generic fexofenadine will be lower than those of brand-name Allegra - but probably only 20% to 30% lower until early 2006 when other generic competitors are permitted to market versions of the drug. The price will decline sharply for all generic versions of fexofenadine at that point. The average price for brand-name Allegra was $85 to $112 in March 2005, depending on dose.

Consumers who currently take Allegra and want to stick with that medicine should ask their doctors and pharmacists about switching them to generic fexofenadine. It is identical to Allegra.

This Web site’s report on antihistamines recommends that people needing an antihistamine first try generic loratadine, now available as a nonprescription medicine. Loratadine is the generic form of the once-popular prescription drug Claritin. Generic loratadine tablets sell for as little as $3 to $10 for a month’s supply at most pharmacies. Only 10mg loratadine pills are available. That dosage strength per day helps most people, but if you need a stronger dose to relieve symptoms, you can just take two a day.

The companies that launched generic fexofenadine did so amid a potential patent challenge from Allegra’s maker since the patents on the drug are unsettled. Such a challenge could occur at any time. If Allegra’s maker were to prevail, it’s possible that generic fexofenadine would become unavailable. Longer-term, it is unclear whether Allegra’s manufacturer or anyone else intends to apply to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to shift the drug to nonprescription status to compete with loratadine.

Generic 30, 60, and 180 mg Fexofenadine Tablets (Allegra) for Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis, Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria

On Aug. 31, the FDA approved first-time generic formulations of 30, 60, and 180 mg fexofenadine HCl tablets (made by Barr Laboratories, Inc.; brand name Allegra, made by Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.).

Fexofenadine tablets are indicated for the relief of symptoms associated with seasonal allergic rhinitis in adults and children aged six years and older. Symptoms treated effectively in clinical studies included sneezing, rhinorrhea, itchy nose/palate/throat, and itchy/watery/red eyes.

Fexofenadine is also indicated for the treatment of uncomplicated skin manifestations of chronic idiopathic urticaria in adults and children aged six years and older. In clinical studies, fexofenadine significantly reduced pruritus and number of wheals.

DRUG CLASS AND MECHANISM: Fexofenadine is an oral, “second generation” antihistamine that is used to treat the signs and symptoms of allergy that are due to histamine. It is similar to the other second generation antihistamines loratadine (Claritin), cetirizine (Zyrtec) and azelastine (Astelin). Histamine is a chemical that is responsible for many of the signs and symptoms of allergic reactions, for example, swelling of the lining of the nose, sneezing, and itchy eyes. Histamine is released from histamine-storing cells (mast cells) and then attaches to other cells that have receptors for histamine. The attachment of the histamine to the receptors causes the cell to be “activated,” releasing other chemicals that produce the effects that we associate with allergy, e.g., sneezing. Fexofenadine blocks one type of receptor for histamine (the H1 receptor) and thus prevents activation of H1 receptor-containing cells by histamine. Unlike the first generation antihistamines, fexofenadine and other second-generation antihistamines do not readily enter the brain from the blood, and, therefore, they cause less drowsiness. Fexofenadine was approved by the FDA in July, 1995.