Compounding is still appropriate in clinical practice

Compounding involves the mixing of an active drug and preservatives into an appropriate base, or vehicle. All topical drugs are compounded. In the past, most patients with skin disease were treated with "custom made" topical preparations prescribed by their dermatologist; more recently, responsibility for this has been ceded to pharmaceutical companies that manufacture standardized products created from a set formula. Unfortunately, these commercial entities often do not supply all the medications needed by our patients, and under these circumstances, dermatologists can and should maintain the knowledge to extemporaneously compound these preparations themselves.