I have severe allergy and asthma problems every August and Sept. Last year I was pregnant so the physician had me use Astelin instead of Nasonex. It did not work as well for me. So this year I used the Astelin during August and it was not working well enough so I asked the P.A. for a RX for Nasonex, since I am not pregnant. She asked me if I had eye symptoms too which I do...and I use Patadol. So she said she would like to give me Veramyst. She said, and I quote, "It is new and it helps relieve the eye symptoms too." Well I'm all for that since even with the Patadol twice a day...I still can't where my contact lenses. The pharmacy gave me my RX and I used it in the car. I smelled flowers! Flowers bother my allergies and I am hypersensitive to a lot of smells including flowers and perfume. My son smelled it too. It was the RX. I thought this was odd that she would prescribe something with such a strong smell to me. So I read the Patient Prescription Information Sheet and it says it is "Fluticasone Spray - Nasal Common Brand Names (Flonase)". Well Flonase is not new. I used it before the Nasonex. The doctor prescribed Veramyst because it treats the eye symptoms too. I have been to Veramyst's website and Flonase' website. Veramyst treats more symptoms. They both contain fluticasone. But Veramyst also lists "furoate". The only thing my web searches come up with is other drugs that have "furoate" as the second part of their drug name. So if they are not the same....how can the Pharmacy give me something else without asking me and/or my doctor? They said I have to come back tomorrow for my son's RX because it was "out of stock" so why didn't they just order my Veramyst too? Like I said I asked my doctor for Nasonex NOT Flonase so I can't see her saying ok either. This is not the first time they have given me the wrong medicine. Twice they did not reconstituted my toddler's medicine, nor did they provide instructions for me to reconstitute it.
Q: What is the difference between Flonase and Veramyst?
Hi,
I'm not sure what your pharmacy gave you, but both Flonase and Veramyst do contain the same corticosteroid, fluticasone, as you discovered. And they're both made by the same manufacturer, so I'm wondering if it's possible that your pharmacy DID give you Veramyst, but it's not clear in the enclosed patient information sheet you got.
The difference between the 2 preparations is that in Flonase, the fluticasone is bonded with propionate and in Veramyst, it's with furoate, as you said. Those are not meds in and of themselves, just chemicals that help the fluticasone do its job. That difference probably accounts for the smell vs. nonsmell.
As far as I can tell, there's no significant difference between the 2 medicines, though studies proving Veramyst's efficacy with eye allergy symptoms enables it to market that. In reality, though, anecdotal evidence pretty much shows that most nasal steroids help with eye symptoms too.
If you really want to know what the pharmacy gave you and why they made a substitution (if they did), I'd ask them. Substitutions can be made if the doctor checks off OK on his prescription form. Health insurance may also specify a substitution.
Hope you find some relief,
Kathi
Regarding your allergy to "smells", the allergic reactions to flowers and perfumes are typically the result of certain particulates or other matter that come in contact with your body. the smells themselves are not likely responsible for the allergic reaction but simply accompany the matter that does the damage. the smell that may accompany some medications should not produce an allergic reaction unless the medication contains some matter such as pollen. that is unlikely since the medication is designed to counteract some symptoms that accrue to sensitivity to things like pollen and other allergens.
flonase is not the generic of veramyst. flonase has a generic. veramyst does not. however, because they have the same main ingredient, the insurance may require you take flonase. Usually in these cases, a dr can fill out a form to say why you need the name brand version. Being that flonase has generics, each one may be different than the next, if made by different companies....
veramyst doesn't cause problems for those of us with post nasal drip, like flonase does. That's the difference. The flonase goes right down my throat, and makes me feel sick. the veramyst doesn't.
You are the first post I've seen that described exactly my condition. I lost my job and insurance, so I went up to the pharmacy to see what I was going to have to pay to keep my Veramyst and they said $125. Ouch! I had used Flonase and it always went down the back of my throat and made me feel nauseous and would always cause me to sneeze. So far the Veramyst has been painless, so there had to be something that's different about it.
I have had sever year round allergy symptoms for approximately 8 years (I am 26 years old currently). I have tried almost every allergy medication that my allergist could think of. He asked me to try Veramyst as it was relatively new and he was having great success with people who had difficulty seeing results from other medication. I am extremely excited with the product and can't believe that the product is working so well. I am looking for an alternative, however, as my insurance company does not cover Veramyst; the retail price is my area is $144/bottle. After reading numerous blogs online I am considering giving Flonase a try, however, I am concerned with the amount of material going into my nose and causing irritation. As my allergist put it to me "Veramyst delivers 1/2 of the normal dosage of other nose sprays, in twice as fine of a mist". I can tell the difference in using the product that I don't get any running down the back of my throat or dripping out the front of my nose. The other allergy medications would do this and for some reason cause irritation to my nose then. I don't know if this helps anyone, but I figured it was worth sharing.
Make sure you are getting exact directions on how to spray these meds. My Dr did not explain it right, but here it is from a different Dr.
Insert the nozzle into your nose and point outward away from the middle of your nose and pump the medication. DONT INHALE THE MEDICATION. Do the same on the other side. AGAIN DO NOT INHALE! Breath through your mouth for a minute or two until the medication dries. If you have to, use a tissue to wipe away any thing that drips out the nose. Once the meds have dried up breath again through your nose. Now you have done it correctly. Again, point outward and do NOT inhale the medication.
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I just wanted to add that because of my new insurance I had to switch from Veramyst to (generic) Flonase. It smells exactly like rose oil! I noticed right away. Luckily, the smell doesn't bother me, but for me personally Flonase certainly does not work as well as the Veramyst. I am extremely sensitive to smells - especially dust, dirt, must - and suddenly my whole house smells dirty to me! Yes, it is an older home, but A) I keep it as clean as possible and B) Never smelled anything like this until the script switch. Plus, no one else who visits ever smells the smells that I now can.
Also, I am more tired now. Since the switch I have been napping every afternoon - can barely keep my eyes open.
So, my deduction is that they are definitely NOT exactly the same and I don't think it is fair that it is allowed as a substitution for Veramyst. If Veramyst didn't cost so much without insurance I would just switch back and pay out of pocket. Unfortunately, even after months of trials and errors with allergy meds (I also currently take loratidine - Claritin - and occasionally Astelin) and finally finding the "perfect" mix, I've got to start all over again!