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Compounding or manufacturing? When there is reselling of the product to a third party outside of the patient healthcare professional relationships

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Final answer:

Compounding is the custom preparation of medication for individual patients, whereas manufacturing is large-scale production for resale. The pharmaceutical industry heavily invests in R&D for natural compounds and employs pharmacovigilance post-market to ensure drug safety.

Step-by-step explanation:

The distinction between compounding and manufacturing in the context mentioned relates to the production and distribution of pharmaceutical products. Compounding refers to the process of creating a custom medication for a specific patient based on a healthcare professional's prescription, typically performed by a pharmacist. In contrast, manufacturing refers to the large-scale production of medications that are meant for resale to third parties, not directly to patients, following a standardized formula.

Within the pharmaceutical industry, significant resources are allocated to the discovery and development of new medications, particularly those rooted in natural compounds. About one third of all pharmaceutical research and development focuses on these compounds due to their potential as effective treatments. This heavy investment in R&D underscores the complexity of drug synthesis and the importance of cost control measures.

Once a drug is brought to market, pharmacovigilance systems are necessary to monitor the drug's long-term safety and its effects on specific patient subgroups, ensuring continued assessment beyond initial approval.

User Tim Wilcox
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Final answer:

The difference between compounding and manufacturing involves the scale and intended recipient of the pharmaceutical product. Companies spend a significant portion of their R&D budget on natural compounds, which form a substantial portion of new drugs. Efficiency in drug production and ongoing safety monitoring are also critical in the pharmaceutical industry.

Step-by-step explanation:

The term compounding usually refers to the process by which a pharmacist or a healthcare professional combines, mixes, or alters ingredients to create a medication tailored to the needs of an individual patient. On the other hand, manufacturing is the large-scale production of pharmaceutical products that are subsequently sold, typically after being approved by regulatory agencies, to third parties or to the market at large. This distinction becomes important when considering the journey of a drug from conception and R&D to being sold on the market.

Pharmaceutical companies invest heavily in the development of medications, with significant funding going towards researching natural compounds. Nearly a third of all R&D budgeting is devoted to these compounds, which highlights their importance. Furthermore, it's critical to understand that approximately 35 percent of all new drugs introduced between 1981 and 2002 were derived from natural sources. Moreover, drug companies must continuously monitor their products for efficacy and safety through pharmacovigilance even after market release, ensuring that they meet long-term safety standards across diverse patient populations.

The process of researching and developing new medications, and the subsequent synthesis and production, involves careful consideration of costs. A substantial amount of research aims at creating methodologies to produce drugs more efficiently, optimizing compounds produced in reactions in order to control expenses.

User Nicolas Belley
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