I have been on the Patches for about 8 years, prior to that it was the never ending chase of pills. Anything but oxycodone gave me a headache and did nothing for the pain. Morphine was the most useless, giving me no relief, not even via IV.
Then I finally got the patch. Took a few months, but I got the dose right. I put on 2-100 mcg/h patches every 36 hours. Yes, you read that right, I wear 2-100mcg/h patches on my shoulder and change them when they run out in 36 or so hours. When I first used them, they lasted almost 48 hours, but over the years it dropped to 36. Sandoz is the one I prefer as they give 16.8 mg per hour, unlike the other transdermal suppliers, of which there are more than a few- Teva-fentanyl, RAN-fentanyl and Sandoz are the main ones, only the Duragesic, making the old style with the gel inside. You can get the gel ones(Duragesic), but as they are not generic, you have to pay out of pocket. What is great about Canada's coverage is after you cover the deductible, depending on your yearly income, it's free. Average person is about 600.00 for the year. Anyhoo...what I notice between the gel and sticker, is the gel last about 12 hours longer, but I like the stickers better as they are smaller. I tore my shoulder up playing hockey and after 2 failed surgeries and them wanting to do bone grafts and more surgeries, I said no more damage by well intentioned Doctors thank you...I will stay will the meds. But my shoulder is now bone on bone.
So I noticed that other than Sandoz, the others all had a lower per hour dosing, they would be 10.8 or 11, compared to the 16.8 that Sandoz provides. So it is important to find out how much the the patch delivers per hour, as the lower the dose, the less effective the patch. I realize we have different suppliers compared to our brother and sisters South of the border, but that per hour dosage makes a big difference in pain management. I am not sure what the gel patches give per hour, since it has been years since I used them(see coverage). Hope that helps, I apologize for being all over the place, but I type slower than I think...good ole hunt and peck.