Good sources for Rx drugs?
June 27, 2005 11:36 PM   Subscribe

Where can I find, preferably online, really obscure prescription drugs for sale without being "in" with a doctor? Specifically, I'm looking for Nizoral (ketoconazole) in either scalp fluid (I can only find Italian references) or foam (might only be in clinical trials). Generally, I'm sure there must be message boards for this kind of thing. A few years back, I had access to a private one with pretty good traffic, but it appears to be defunct now. Anyone have any good references they might be willing to share?

I know ketoconazole easy to find in shampoo or cream.
posted by trevyn to Health & Fitness (13 answers total)
 
Moreover, if you need the stuff that bad, maybe you should be seeing a doctor about your condition.
posted by jjg at 12:02 AM on June 28, 2005


Your doctor probably sees fungal infections all the time. Athlete's foot, jock itch, tinea, all sorts of stuff. Or is the cost of seeing a doctor the issue?

There are lots of over the counter things you could try, too.
posted by Justinian at 12:29 AM on June 28, 2005


Googling ketoconazole online pharmacy no prescription turns up lots of sites that supposedly do what you're asking. Is there a reason that's not satisfactory? Or is what you're asking for here some indication of the sites' reliability? If so, good luck with that; maybe someone will email you. Your other choice is heading over the border to Mexico, assuming you're in the USA.

if you need the stuff that bad, maybe you should be seeing a doctor about your condition

jjg, it's possible trevyn has indeed seen a doctor, has used Nixoral in the past and knows it's exactly what s/he needs, but has lost touch with the doctor or doesn't have the money for another office visit right now. I was in that kind of situation for a number of years, looking every spring for Albuterol to handle the allergic asthma that hits me like clockwork for 5-6 weeks and then goes away. When money was tight and I didn't have insurance, I needed (and found) ways to get the Albuterol without a visit to a doctor, which I felt was superfluous to symptom relief.
posted by mediareport at 12:35 AM on June 28, 2005


Response by poster: Googling ketoconazole online pharmacy no prescription turns up lots of sites

Yes, all of which offer cream or shampoo, not scalp fluid or foam.

As far as I can tell, neither is commercially available in the US even with a doctor's prescription.

I understand that some of you may be pleased with the way pharmaceuticals are dispensed in the US, but please recognize that some of us are not.
posted by trevyn at 1:00 AM on June 28, 2005


I guess I'm just not sure why it has to be ketoconazole and not some other antifungal that comes in scalp fluid or foam. Selenium sulfide comes in foam over the counter, I think?
posted by Justinian at 1:37 AM on June 28, 2005


It may be more trouble than it is worth, but have you looked for, or asked, a compounding pharmacy? I've never used one, but it might be worth it to see if they could put some ketoconazole into an appropriate base for you, even without a prescription.
posted by monopas at 1:47 AM on June 28, 2005


Response by poster: Hmm, interesting. Heck, maybe I could make my own out of tablets.
posted by trevyn at 2:13 AM on June 28, 2005


Nizoral (ketoconazole) is FDA approved for systemic and topical treatment of fungal infections in the US. Nizoral shampoo was approved in '97. It even has a generic form now.
posted by 517 at 4:00 AM on June 28, 2005


...if you want something fluidy you can leave in, try asking for Lotrisone.
posted by 517 at 4:03 AM on June 28, 2005


Where can I find, preferably online, really obscure prescription drugs for sale without being "in" with a doctor?

The central question of the age.
posted by telstar at 4:50 AM on June 28, 2005


In the United States, the only commercially available dosage forms of ketoconazole are the oral tablets and topical cream and shampoo.
posted by mokujin at 4:53 AM on June 28, 2005


And more to the point, how will you know that what you get by buying drugs that way will be pure, not expired, and not some other substance entirely? I read a story several years ago, I think in the Washington Post, that ran assays on various popular things bought illicitly online (mostly male "ED" drugs, which are the category killers). They turned up lots of adulterated, phony, and dangerous stuff. Even more true with unapproved and "alternative" products, as in the various scares that have turned up lead and mercury in unacceptable levels in products shipping from China.

I'd say it's time to *get* "in" with a doctor and find out what's the latest thing in topical antifungals. Yah, the US official pharmacy system isn't perfect, but the internet is?
posted by realcountrymusic at 5:09 AM on June 28, 2005


The central question of the age.

And the answer seems to be 50% "Why would you want to do that?", 30% "Why don't you ask this other question", 10% observations about safety and 9% actual useful information.

Then again, that seems to be pretty much all of the answers on teh intruhweb.
posted by phearlez at 7:01 AM on June 28, 2005


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