Dermatologists are unsure why the combined antibiotic is out of stock and how long the shortage will last.
The TGA has announced a shortage of sulfamethoxazole (Resprim, Alphapharm), a commonly prescribed antibiotic for acne.
The availability of the antibiotic differs between the three brands it is marketed under, based on the update posted on the organisation’s medicine shortage reports database.
Although it is currently accessible as Resprim Forte, according to the update, the brand is expected to go out of stock from March due to manufacturing delays.
Only emergency supplies of the brand Resprim remain, while Septrin Forte is expected to be unavailable until mid-March.
However, Western Australian dermatologist, Clinical Associate Professor Kurt Gebauer told Dermatology Republic that he has not been able to access the drug at all, with rumours the shortage may last eight months or more.
“In this case, I’ve gotten a note back from my pharmacist saying that they’re going out of stock for eight or 10 months or something ridiculous,” he said.
If delays do continue that long, Clinical Associate Professor Gebauer said doctors would need to start thinking of alternative treatments.
Immunosuppressed patients prescribed sulfamethoxazole to combat pneumocystis will be especially hard hit by the shortage. This is an increasing concern due to the number of immune suppressed patients in the community, he said.
“From a medical point of view, [immunosuppressed patients] are the worry, because pneumocystis is a very significant issue,” Clinical Associate Professor Gebauer said.
For patients being treated for conditions such as acne rosacea, Dr Gebauer said there were several other medication that doctors could turn to while the shortage continues, although these were not without downsides.
Doxycycline, minocycline and erythromycin are the preferred alternatives, according to Clinical Associate Professor Gebauer.
However, only the 250mg capsules of erythromycin are PBS listed, with doctors needing to ring an authority to write PBS scripts for larger amounts if patients cannot afford the cost.
Currently, shortages have been leading to uncertainty in practices, which lead to hassle and stress directed at practice staff, he said.
“You just wonder when there’s four or five brands for the same drug, how can they all run out all at the same time?” he said.
The TGA attributed shortages of both resprim and septrin forte to the unexpected increase in demand from patients, but Clinical Associate Professor Gebauer said dermatologists have been largely left in the dark.
“When I’m prescribing things for patients for long term supply, I need to be able to say, ‘look, this is the best drug for you. It’s not available at the moment. Can you hang on for a month? Because [it’ll] be back at the end of March.’ Or, ‘I’ll give you a Plan B, which you take for a month, and then we’ll be able to get plan A’. We can factor these things in, the [issue] is not informing the practitioners,” said Clinical Associate Professor Gebauer.
More information on the sulfamethoxazole shortage, as well as other antibiotic shortages nationwide, can be found on the TGA’s website.
