Lovell AG, Protus BM, Dickman JR, Saphire ML. Palatability of Crushed Over-the-Counter Medications.
J Pain Symptom Manage 2021;
61:755-762. [PMID:
32976943 DOI:
10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2020.09.020]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2020] [Revised: 09/10/2020] [Accepted: 09/13/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT
Dysphagia is a common concern, especially in the last several days of life. Medications are often crushed for ease of administration for individuals with swallowing difficulty.
OBJECTIVES
To assess palatability of commonly used crushed over-the-counter (OTC) medications. A secondary objective is to evaluate pharmacist knowledge and opinions of crushing medications.
METHODS
Pharmacist participants sampled crushed OTC medications and completed presampling and postsampling surveys about crushing medications. Participants were excluded for current smoking or tobacco use, pregnancy, allergy to any study medication or applesauce, or potential drug-drug interaction with study medications. Eight OTC medications were crushed and mixed in applesauce: naproxen, fexofenadine, phenazopyridine, multivitamin, loperamide, famotidine, sennosides, and sennosides-docusate. Participants were blinded to medication samples and control (plain applesauce). Samples were rated from one (least palatable) to five (most palatable). Investigators recorded participants' comments, behaviors, and facial expressions during sampling.
RESULTS
Nineteen volunteers completed the study. Most participants rated three samples as not palatable (score of two or less): fexofenadine, 16 (84%); loperamide, 13 (68%); and sennosides-docusate, 16 (84%). All participants rated famotidine and sennosides palatable. The percentage of participants who would consider palatability in recommendations for crushing medications increased from 47% prestudy to 79% poststudy.
CONCLUSION
Palatability should be considered when recommending crushed medications. Survey responses indicate that pharmacists' opinions of crushed medications changed after this palatability experiment. Clinicians should evaluate the appropriateness of all medications when dysphagia is a concern and deprescribe medications when appropriate to reduce burden for patients and caregivers.
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