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Switching from Pentasa to Lialda? - advise

switching from Pentasa to Lialda? - advise

i'm in my early 20's and have had colitis for 1.5 years. My condition has been very stable for the last year. Although my stomach has been normal, I have some issues with Pentasa. I am thinking switching to Lialda could possibly solve my issues. The side effects that I get from Pentasa do not seem to be standard for most people. I have some form of dependence on the drug, where I need to take it by certain times or else I get a "weird" feeling almost as if i'm light headed. The feeling goes away once I take the pills. However, I need to eat a somewhat full-size meal before taking the pills or else I get light-headed. (can't take the pills without food)

I have a gasterologist check up in 2 weeks where I want to see if switching to Lialda could solve some of my issues and if he'll let me try it out. Besides the fact that it is more convenient (probably would only have to take 2 pills once instead of 6 throughout the day) I think the fact that it is time released could help my issue. Basically by being time released, I do not think I would have the same type of urge to take the pentasa which is controlled released. I know this may sound weird as I have not read of poeple that have simliar experineces with pentasa. (eg: if I go to 7:30pm without taking my 3rd daily dosage I get the weird feeling)

Also, i'm hoping that I will get less bloated from the lialdo, because the pentasas are so large that getting bloated after eating and taking the pills is pretty common (this isn't my main concern though). If anyone has similar experiences i would be interested, because it seems most people do not have similar issues with pentasa. Also if anyone has made the switch from pentasa to Lialda or just takes lialda in general and would like to comment that would be appreciated - thanks
 
Pentasa and Lialda are basically the same medication...mesalamine...just different in dosage and how quickly it's released. Asacol is also mesalamine. Lialda has more of the mesalamine per pill and it's released quite slowly as compared to Asacol.

It's unlikely you will notice any difference, except perhaps to your pocket. Many prescription plans do not cover Lialda because it's more expensive than Asacol or Pentasa.

If you are lucky and your plan covers the cost do the switch. It's much more convenient to just take one or two pills once a day rather than a handfull several times a day.
 
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