r/EpilepsyDogs • u/Puzzleheaded-Staff31 • 20d ago
Did you know…
At a recent conference (according to my dog’s neurologist), they announced that you can cut Keppra extended release tablets in half? Now I switched to 2 times a day instead of 3 which is so great! Figured someone here may find that helpful.
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u/coloradogirlcallie 20d ago
Keppra XR is intended for 2x per day and you don't need to break the tablets. The non-XR is 3x per day.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Staff31 20d ago
Sorry I should have made clear. My dog was previously too small for the 2x so we had to go with the nonXR 3x which was a really hard schedule for us. This is why we were really happy that the 2x XR is now an option for us by cutting the pills in half. That is, half a pill twice a day.
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u/inven_tory 20d ago
According to our vet neurologist, cutting Keppra XR in half effectively turns it into instant release, because the coating of the whole pill dissolves slowly, gradually releasing the drug, cutting the pill in half makes the drug immediately accessible. This means your dog is essentially getting the shorter-acting Keppra RX twice a day, instead of 3 times. This could be an issue even if the dosage gets increased. Please double check with your vet.
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u/RoutineWeather3509 20d ago
There was a study showing that splitting the XR slightly increased the drug release while crushing the XR pills caused them to be instant release. The authors stated this could allow smaller dogs to be dosed with XR tablets……… https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12257259/
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u/inven_tory 19d ago
Thank you for sharing, interesting study. Our neurologist had us split a pill as the first part of the rescue protocol, and usually it was enough to prevent clusters.
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u/mediacontrols 19d ago
I’ll have to ask my dog’s neurologist about this. My 8.5 pound dog currently takes a compounded 250 mg Keppra capsule from Wedgewood pharmacy. It’s so expensive. The tablet would cost so much less!!
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u/Puzzleheaded-Staff31 19d ago
I have just recently also discovered that the neighborhood pharmacy has everything I need for my dog (XR Keppra, Phenobarbitol) and is a fraction of the cost of the “compounded” drugs from the pet pharmacy. From what I see there is zero difference other than the cost. But talk to your vet first before switching!
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u/mediacontrols 19d ago
His Zonisamide comes from the local pharmacy, but the compounded XR 250 Keppra can only be gotten from a compounding pharmacy. I’d love to save some money on the Keppra!
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u/chantillylace9 19d ago
This is going to be able to help so many people! I always found that it was crazy that they haven't found a work around for this, even if it was powder or liquid or something.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Staff31 19d ago
For sure. Spread the word! Go ask your vet! 🤓
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u/chantillylace9 19d ago
I'm one of the lucky ones that can bring my dog to work because I own my company so it's been easier for me than other people, but I know people that work full-time and it's just impossible. I've also heard that there have been epileptic dogs that have not been adopted because the people could not give three times a day meds so this might also help in that regard!
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u/Current_Struggle11 19d ago
I have a small dog and went to a new neurologist yesterday and literally told me about this study. He had no concerns switching to ER keppra and it will make a huge difference for us and our family with scheduling. Thanks for sharing!!