Generic Locoid Lipocream

Can I Buy Generic Locoid Lipocream?

Locoid Lipocream^® (hydrocortisone butyrate) is a prescription skin medication used to treat inflammation and itching due to a variety of different skin conditions. It is a topical steroid that is applied to the skin two or three times a day. This medicine is approved for use in adults and children as young as three months of age for atopic dermatitis treatment and in adults only for all other uses.

 

Brand-name Locoid Lipocream is made by Ferndale Laboratories, Inc., for Triax Pharmaceuticals, LLC. It is not yet available in generic form.

 

When Will a Generic Version Be Available?

The exclusivity rights for Locoid Lipocream are currently set to expire in June 2014. This is the earliest predictable date that a generic version could become available. However, other circumstances could come up to extend or shorten the exclusivity period. This could include such things as other patents for specific Locoid Lipocream uses or lawsuits.

 

Is Hydrocortisone Butyrate a Generic Version of Locoid Lipocream?

No -- hydrocortisone butyrate is the active ingredient in Locoid Lipocream (as well as in various other medications), but is not a generic version of it. What can be confusing is that the active ingredient of any drug is often referred to as the "generic name."

 

The generic name is different from a generic version of a medicine. In order for there to be a generic version of a medicine, the original medicine must have gone off-patent and another company besides the original manufacturer must make the product.

 

Locoid Lipocream is different from most creams, including regular Locoid Cream. It holds in moisture, like an ointment, but feels like a cream (it does not leave a greasy, messy film). Locoid Lipocream is not interchangeable with any other hydrocortisone butyrate products. If you would like to try a different hydrocortisone butyrate product, you will need to have your healthcare provider write you a new prescription.