Claritin-D Generic

Generic Claritin-D: An Overview

Claritin-D^® (loratadine and pseudoephedrine sulfate) is a non-prescription medication approved to treat allergies and nasal congestion due to the common cold. It contains two different medications: loratadine (an antihistamine) and pseudoephedrine (a decongestant). Claritin-D was originally a prescription-only product, but was switched to non-prescription status.

 

Claritin-D is manufactured by Schering-Plough HealthCare Products, Inc. However, many different generic versions of Claritin-D are now available.

 

Understanding Generic Non-Prescription Products

For prescription drugs, generic versions must go through certain tests to compare them to brand-name medications. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) then looks at these tests to decide if the generic versions are equivalent to the brand-name medications and assigns a rating to each one. However, non-prescription products (including Claritin-D) are regulated differently, and no generic equivalence ratings are given. Therefore, it is usually impossible to say with certainty that a "generic" non-prescription medication is completely equivalent to the brand-name product. However, the term "generic" is usually used to refer to any product that contains the same active ingredient in the same strength and in the same form as the brand-name product.