|
May
23
|
Many individuals have difficulties swallowing medicine when it is presented to them as tablets or capsules. Dysphagia or swallowing difficulties can affect individuals of all ages including youngsters although it is most usual in older people as they are more susceptible to the causative diseases as well as age associated changes in the functions of the saliva glands. Dysphagia is a particularly serious issue in care homes for the elderly where up to 1/3 of residents may well suffer from it which makes looking after them a far more challenging and time consuming process.
Dysphagia consequences can be quite severe as it can clearly interfere with treatments proscribed by doctors if the patient is unwilling or unable to take treatments in pill form. Furthermore there is a threat that capsules ingested orally could potentially cause choking or a blockage of the airway and there’s also a danger that capsules can become stuck in the throat which may result in the incorrect dispersal of the drug to the body as well as possible harm to the oesophagus.
Up till now the most widespread method of coping with the issues that Dysphagia presents has been tablet crushing in order to make treatments easier to swallow. However there are a number of problems associated with crushing tablets that may have serious implications and can affect the efficacy of the medicine. A lot of tablets have a sugar coating on them to make them taste more pleasant and although crushing them will not have any effect on the efficiacy of the tablet it may make them taste very unpleasant. Pills with an enteric coating should never be crushed before they’re taken as the coating is made to keep the tablet together in the stomach to either; protect the stomach from the medicine, protect the medicine from the stomach or to release the medicine immediately after it has left the stomach.
Fortunately there is now an alternative solution for people who suffer from Dysphagia and the people that care for them. There is currently a larger range than ever before of liquid medicines that can be taken orally and have the exact same effect as pills or capsules. Oral liquid medicine is produced to treat an array of illnesses and diseases like those affecting the cardio-vascular system and endocrine system and more liquid medicines are being produced all the time. Liquid medicines are effortless to swallow for those with Dysphagia and are available in a number of enjoyable flavours.