From Mr A. R. L. Buxton, MRPharmS
SIR,—I am writing to draw to the attention of all pharmacists the potential for confusion in the writing of prescriptions for oral buprenorphine.
I was recently called upon to dispense a prescription for buprenorphine 2mg tablets (Subutex, Schering-Plough), a product indicated as substitution treatment for opioid drug dependence. The prescriber intended that the patient should receive buprenorphine 200µg tablets (Temgesic, Schering-Plough) for analgesia. This simple prescribing error could have led to the patient receiving 10 times the dose of drug intended.
I would recommend that pharmacists are particularly vigilant when called upon to dispense Subutex in the community, especially if it has been prescribed generically.
Alastair Buxton
Shrewsbury