When treating opioid use disorder (OUD), mediation-assisted therapy (MAT) may be used to reduce withdrawal symptoms and cravings. One of the medications commonly prescribed for MAT is Subutex, which is the brand name for buprenorphine.
However, you may notice that buprenorphine tablet colors can vary. The most common colors you’ll see are orange and white. So, what’s the difference between orange vs. white Subutex?
We’ll cover everything you should know in this article. That way, if you pick up a prescription from the pharmacy or are given medication during treatment and it’s not the color you expected, you’ll be aware of how these Subutex tablet differences will affect you.
What Is Subutex?
As mentioned, Subutex is the brand name for buprenorphine, which is commonly prescribed to prevent withdrawals and cravings when treating opioid addiction.
Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist. It interacts with the receptors in your brain similarly to opioid painkillers or recreational drugs like heroin, but it’s not as powerful or as addictive.
Therefore, you can take it during the early stages of addiction treatment to reduce the side effects that would occur when suddenly stopping opioids. It’s a way to ease into sobriety so you can focus on recovery and creating a plan for success.
Most studies show that buprenorphine is effective and performs similarly to other medications that may be used during MAT, such as methadone.
Physical Differences: Orange vs. White Subutex
Now, let’s review the physical differences to help you identify the different types of buprenorphine tablets.
Orange Subutex
Orange Subutex is the brand-name version of buprenorphine. It’s manufactured by Actavis Pharma, Inc.
You’ll typically see orange Subutex in an oval-shaped tablet. These tablets contain buprenorphine hydrochloride, and they’re generally used sublingually (placed under the tongue and dissolved).
Orange Subutex comes in doses of 2 mg and 8 mg. The 2 mg tablets will have a logo and the number “156” printed on them, and the 8 mg tablets will have a logo and the number “153” printed on them.
White Subutex
When you see white tablets, it means that it’s the generic version of Subutex. Therefore, the medication isn’t actually under the Subutex brand name. Instead, you’ll just see “buprenorphine” labeled on your medication bottle.
Generic white buprenorphine can come in an oval or hexagonal shape, and the imprints can vary depending on the manufacturer. Similar to orange Subutex, it comes in both 2 mg and 8 mg doses.
Some common imprints you’ll see on the white oval-shaped tablets are “B2” for the 2 mg dose and “B8” for the 8 mg dose.
Hexagonal tablets are usually an 8 mg dose and often labeled with “54 411.”
But again, these labels can vary. If you pick up a prescription and it doesn’t have these letters or numbers on it, that doesn’t necessarily mean you got the wrong pills, especially if you got it from a licensed pharmacy. Contacting your doctor or the pharmacy is a good next step if you want to check to make sure before taking the medication.
Formulation and Inactive Ingredients
Other than simply differentiating buprenorphine pills between branded and generic, you might still wonder if there are any other reasons why the colors of these pills can vary. After all, they both contain the same active ingredient.
There actually is a reason for this. The inactive ingredients in tablets can differ between manufacturers affecting their color and potentially other things like taste. Those are usually dyes that add color and other components that hold buprenorphine in pill form. They don’t impact how effective the pills are, just how they’re made and appear.
The FDA has strict regulations for color additives and dyes in medications to ensure consumer safety. So, you don’t have to worry about how additives will affect you. If the medication was prescribed and dispensed by a pharmacy, it already went through that review process.
Efficacy and Patient Experience
Patients often question whether generic Subutex alternatives are as effective as the brand-name version. While generics contain the same active ingredient, buprenorphine, slight differences in inactive ingredients or manufacturing processes can sometimes impact how the medication is absorbed or tolerated by the body.
The FDA goes through a strict approval process for generic medications and manufacturers that produce them. That ensures the pills work and are made in a safe environment.
The main differences that patients may experience are taste and how long the tablets take to dissolve under the tongue. However, the benefit of generic tablets is they’re generally much cheaper than brand-name ones and may be covered more easily by insurance providers.
Considerations for Patients and Providers
It’s important for healthcare providers to consider how medication switches will impact patients, even if it’s just going from the brand name to the generic form.
That’s especially true for medications like buprenorphine that are often used during addiction treatment where patients are going through a lot. It can be kind of jarring to receive your pills and have them be a different color or shape.
Therefore, healthcare providers should always let patients know if they’re changing a prescription from the brand name to the generic form so they can be prepared.
If you’re a patient who’s received a buprenorphine prescription and ever have concerns, reaching out to your doctor or care team is always a good idea so you know what’s going on.
Conclusion
Both orange and white Subutex contain the same active ingredient, buprenorphine. While they may have a different color or shape, they should be just as effective when treating opioid addiction.
If you’re prescribed buprenorphine, make sure you discuss it with your doctor and ask any questions you have about the medication. Also, remember that a well-rounded treatment plan that consists of therapy, lifestyle changes, and building life skills is essential when recovering from addiction. You shouldn’t rely on medication alone.
If you or someone you care about is struggling with opioid addiction, we can help at Genesis House Rehab. We offer medical detox and residential treatment for drug and alcohol addiction. All our plans are tailored to your personal needs, and you’ll have the support of our knowledgeable treatment staff each step of the way.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can support you.
References
- Gowing, Linda, et al. “Buprenorphine for Managing Opioid Withdrawal.” Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, no. 2, 21 Feb. 2017, doi:10.1002/14651858.cd002025.pub5. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6464315/
- Harp, Bhakti. FDA Regulation of Color Additives in Drug Products. https://www.fda.gov/media/122829/download
- Research, Center for Drug Evaluation and. “The Generic Drug Approval Process.” FDA, 2024, https://www.fda.gov/drugs/cder-conversations/generic-drug-approval-process
- “Prescriptions: Why They’re so Complicated.” Family Practice Management, vol. 9, no. 2, 15 Feb. 2002, pp. 25–26, https://www.aafp.org/pubs/fpm/issues/2002/0200/p25.html
