Animal-free medications need better labeling for patients with alpha-gal syndrome
Key takeaways:
- Patients made about 8.5 inquiries a day.
- The most searched medication was famotidine.
- The most common medication without an animal-free alternative was hydrochlorothiazide.
SAN DIEGO — Patients with alpha-gal syndrome need ingredient transparency to avoid animal-derived products in medications, according to a presentation here.
The results of this process improvement analysis were presented at the 2025 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology/World Allergy Organization Joint Congress.
“This study was prompted by the increased use of VeganMed’s free medical information center,” Cora Altomari, PharmD, medical information fellow at VeganMed, told Healio. “It was becoming abundantly clear that patients were struggling getting information from drug manufacturers. We needed to understand the demand for suitable medications for [alpha-gal syndrome] patients to better understand risk and labeling implications.”
VeganMed is an online tool that helps patients as well as medical providers find medications that are free from animal-derived ingredients, according to its website.
The study analyzed data from an alpha-gal-focused national medical information center between the first and second quarter of 2024. The researchers aimed to determine the frequency and growth of alpha-gal syndrome-related medication inquiries. They also looked at the most common queried medications.
Researchers found that 96,026 unique visitors used accessed the VeganMed, Inc. website in 2024. Visitors made inquiries on 6,668 medications. This amounted to a range of one to 37 medications per inquiry (median, 1).
Inquiries grew 238% from the first to fourth quarter of 2024. There were 886 unique medication inquiries, and 76.5% of these medications had animal-free alternatives. Health care providers made a total of 9.7% of these inquiries.
The most searched medications included famotidine, levothyroxine, vitamin D, cetirizine and amoxicillin. Researchers noted that the medication with the most searches that did not have an animal-free alternative was hydrochlorothiazide.
“A three-fold increase in the number of medications inquired about in 2024 (quarter one vs. quarter four) made it abundantly clear that a need for health care provider education and increased accessibility to animal-free medications is needed,” Altomari told Healio. “It is noteworthy that 76.5% of the medications inquired about through VeganMed’s medical information center had an available animal-free option.”
Altomari also noted that health care providers have the option to use VeganMed as a resource to identify alpha-gal appropriate medications and can have their institution’s pharmacy group collaborate with VeganMed for a systemwide solution.
As for the impact on patients, Altomari presented a patient case to highlight the importance of animal-free medication options.
A patient was prescribed liquid acyclovir, which contained animal-derived glycerin, ultimately putting the patient in the [emergency room],” she said. “Cases like this aren’t uncommon. Patients should advocate for themselves and double check their medications.”
References:
- Labelling of animal-free medications needed for patients with alpha-gal syndrome. https://www.aaaai.org/about/news/news/2025/animal. Published Feb. 10, 2025. Accessed Feb. 25, 2025.
- VeganMed. veganmed.org. Accessed Feb. 25, 2025.