Pediatric Compounding
We Offer Pediatric Compounding Services
It can be challenging to give your children the healthcare they need when they can’t stand taking their medications. At Summers Pharmacy, we’re here to help you conquer any challenge, and that’s why we will create pediatric medications so you and your family can receive the medicine you need. If your child is too young to swallow a pill or has a hard time taking specific medications, we can make medications tailored to your child. If your child’s prescription isn’t available in children-friendly dosage forms, we’ve got you covered.
What is Pediatric Compounding?
Pediatric compounding is the process of helping children by producing the medications they need in the form that works best for them. If your child doesn’t take capsules or tablet medications, we can create a customized prescription in liquid forms that can then be used in more child-friendly medicine. We can create gummy bears, freezer pops, lollipops, and topical creams that are safe and effective for your child.
Being able to customize medication for children is even more important than it is for adults.
While many helpful medicines are available in commercial forms, their delivery methods can be difficult to swallow or ill-tasting to most children. Compounding can help make these medications easier to take and encourage compliance. It can also be helpful for children under the age of 6 months who should not have preservatives.
There are several reasons why administration of medication to kids can be difficult:
Allergies or Sensitivities
Many allergies may require medications that are sugar-free, gluten-free, casein-free, soy-free, dye-free, alcohol-free, or paraben-free. Many children have allergies; but autistic children have even more profound needs. They often have unique physical or psychological challenges that can be exacerbated by ingredients found in food and medicine – such as casein, soy, sugars, gluten, dyes, carbohydrates, and heavy metals (such as aluminum). Parents must manage their child’s unique dietary restrictions, including the ingredients in the medications they take.
Unpalatable Medications
Many oral alternatives can be flavored to help with medication administration in children by making the taste more appealing. This does not alter the effectiveness of the medication. We have numerous flavor choices: grape, cherry, raspberry, peach, marshmallow, lemon, tangerine, pina colada, chocolate, cinnamon, peppermint, crème de menthe, spearmint, wintergreen, and vanilla butternut. Some patients like to combine flavors, such as raspberry marshmallow, chocolate crème de menthe, or cherry lemonade.
Pediatric Dosing
Some traditional retail medications only come in adult dosing options, but compounding allows the strengths of active ingredients to be altered to provide the best dose for your child, which may reduce unwanted side effects.
Dosage Forms
Many medications are not available in child-friendly dosage forms. Pediatric compounding is an option for helping children get the medications they need in a more suitable form. For example, medications that may not be available in liquid forms can be compounded into solutions, suspensions, lozenges, suppositories, lollipops and topical creams.
There are a number of conditions where pediatric compounding can be advantageous:
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Nausea & vomiting
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Sore throat
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Tonsillitis
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Pain from an injury or disease state
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Oral thrush
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Cold sores/fever blisters
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Skin disorders
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Diaper rash
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Dental procedures
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Acid reflux
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Behavioral issues
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Epilepsy
To learn more about how your children’s medications can be better managed with compounded medications from Summers Pharmacy, give us a call today at your nearest Summers Pharmacy location.