LabKate said:

Vendor communication red flags for compounded supply: Won't provide COA before purchase — walk away Claims "100% pure" without analytical data —…

Beyond-use dating (BUD) for compounded supply compounded products:

Lyophilized (unreconstituted): typically 12 months from compounding date
Reconstituted with BAC water: typically 28-30 days refrigerated
Reconstituted with sterile water: typically 48 hours (no preservative!)

Always use BAC water for multi-dose vials. Sterile water has no preservative and supports bacterial growth after first puncture. This is a common and potentially dangerous mistake.

LabKate said:

Vendor communication red flags for compounded supply: Won't provide COA before purchase — walk away Claims "100% pure" without analytical data —…

FDA inspection results for compounding pharmacies selling compounded supply: you can look up any 503B facility's FDA inspection history on the FDA website.

Check for: Form 483 observations (violations), warning letters, and recall history. A clean inspection record is a strong indicator of quality. My pharmacy has had 0 Form 483 observations in their last 4 inspections.

This is public information. Use it. Link: fda.gov/inspections-compliance-enforcement-and-criminal-investigations

LabKate said:

Vendor communication red flags for compounded supply: Won't provide COA before purchase — walk away Claims "100% pure" without analytical data —…

This is exactly what I could not find anywhere else. I will report back once I have actually tried it.

Clinical perspective, offered as context rather than as advice.

Compounding pharmacy customer here with experience relevant to compounded supply.

I've ordered from 2 different compounding pharmacies over the past 2 years. The quality variation is real — purity ranged from 94% to 101% of label claim based on independent Janoshik testing.

My current compounder (a 503B facility) has been consistently 98-101% purity across 10 orders. I pay $121/month vs $1,351 for brand. The savings are substantial and the product is equivalent in my experience.

Re: compounded supply — this applies whether you're using brand or compounded. The clinical principles are the same.

Reporting back.

For the archive: it took about six weeks rather than the two I expected, and the difference between those two numbers was the whole of my problem.