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May 23
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More and more people have difficulties swallowing medication when it’s presented to them in the form of tablets or capsules. Dysphagia or swallowing difficulties can affect individuals spanning various ages including youngsters although it is most frequent in older people because they tend to be more prone to the causative illnesses as well as age related changes in the functions of the saliva glands. Up to 1/3 of residents in care homes are afflicted by Dysphagia which makes caring for their health and well being a much more challenging task.
Dysphagia consequences can be very serious as it can clearly interfere with treatments proscribed by doctors when the affected person is unwilling or unable to take treatments in capsule form. Furthermore there’s a threat that tablets ingested orally might cause choking or a blockage of the airway and there’s also a danger that tablets can become lodged in the throat which might lead to the incorrect dispersal of the drug to the body and also possible damage to the oesophagus.
Up till now the most common method of managing the problems that Dysphagia presents has been tablet crushing to make treatments less difficult to swallow. However there are a number of problems associated with crushing tablets that may have severe implications and may affect the effectiveness of the medicine. Some pills are sugar covered to make them taste better and while crushing them may not alter the way the product works it will make them taste very unpleasant. Tablets with an enteric coating must never be crushed before they are used since the coating is made to keep the tablet together within the stomach to either; protect the stomach from the medicine, protect the medicine from the stomach or to release the medicine soon after it has left the stomach.
Luckily there is an alternative solution for people who are afflicted by Dysphagia and the people that care for them. There is currently a broader range than ever before of liquid medicines which can be used orally and have exactly the same effect as pills or capsules. Oral liquid medicine is produced to deal with a wide range of ailments and diseases like those affecting the cardio-vascular system and endocrine system and more liquid medicines are being created all the time. Liquid medicines are easy to swallow for those with Dysphagia and come in a variety of pleasant flavours.