Courtney asked
I received a Z pack for bronchitis, but the problem is when I got it from my pharmacist they handed me a bottle with 6 loose pills in it instead of what I know a z pack looks like. Which normally I get them they come in a packet like tinfoil and plastic wrapped individual pills in a square shaped cardboard container. My question is, is it illegal for the pharmacist to open up a z-pack and put the pills into a pill bottle or is it even safe for me to take these pills? If not who do I contact to report this as a problem?
Answer
It is relatively common to dispensed 6 loose azithromycin tablets from the pharmacy as opposed to the more recognized Z-Pak (i.e. Z-Pack), a blister card container six individually packaged tablets.
Azithromycin is available to pharmacies in multiple product variations including:
- Z-Pak (Z-pack)
- Bottle of 30 loose tablets
- Bottle 90 loose tablets
When a doctor prescribes a "Z-Pak", they typically want patients to following the common 5 day course of the product. The Z-Pak is a pre-packaged 5 day course (6 total tablets) of azithromycin 250 mg and the directions are often imprinted on the box. The typically dosing regimen for a Z-Pak is as follows:
- Take two tablets by mouth on day 1
- Take one tablet daily on days 2 through 5
As stated above however, azithromycin tablets are also available in larger stock bottles when the drug is dispensed for different regimens. Your tablets were likely re-packaged from the larger stock bottle. It would be very rare and uncommon for a pharmacy to physically remove tablets from a pre-packaged Z-Pak.
The reason you were given loose tablets was most likely due to a stock issue. The Z-Pak is one the most prescribed products in the United States with prescriptions drastically increasing during the colder months on the year. This often leads to stock and supply issues in many pharmacies.
There is no difference between the tablets in the Z-Pack and the loose tablets. They are the exact same product. The Z-Pak simply provides a more convenient product to dispense and store for patients.
There are a variety of manufactures of azithromycin, but below is one example. The tablets that come in this Z-Pack and larger bottle are the exact same product:
However, if your doctor prescribed you a Z-Pak, the pharmacy should have let you know that they were going to dispense loose tablets instead to avoid any sort of confusion. In addition, if for some reason you had a preference for the blister packed Z-Pak, you could have had the opportunity to go to another pharmacy for the product.
