ReviewPatient preference and adherence2018
A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down? A review of strategies for making pills easier to swallow.
Review in Patient preference and adherence, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05173051 (Medication Intake of Solid Dosage Forms), which is not on this map. Cited by 27 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Medication Intake of Solid Dosage Forms: A Risk Factor for Patients With Stroke-induced Dysphagia?
Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed.
- Valbenazine Sprinkle: An Alternative Formulation of Valbenazine for Oral Administration in Patients With Dysphagia.Clinical and translational science · 2025Trial
- Lessons learned from two clinical trials on nutritional supplements to reduce aggressive behaviour.Journal of evaluation in clinical practice · 2022Trial
- Assessment of Taste and Grittiness of RiometDrugs in R&D · 2019Trial
- Gender and age disparities in attitude and preferences of probiotic and prebiotic-rich foods and supplements among adults in Saudi Arabia.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Application of a screening tool to understand the medication habits of patients with swallowing difficulty: a prospective observational study.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2025Observational
- Detection and management of pill swallowing difficulties: a community pharmacy-based observational study.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2025Observational
- Understanding Treatment Adherence in Chronic Diseases: Challenges, Consequences, and Strategies for Improvement.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Ibrutinib oral suspension bioavailability and compatibility for optimal enteral administration route.Therapeutic advances in hematology · 2025Article
- Recent opportunities and application of gellan gum based drug delivery system for intranasal route.Daru : journal of Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences · 2024Review
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- Article
- Medication Lubricants for Oral Delivery of Drugs: Oral Processing Reduces Thickness, Changes Characteristics, and Improves Dissolution Profile.Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Evaluating palatability in young children: a mini-review of relevant physiology and assessment techniques.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2024Review
- Implementing a medication lubricant for pill dysphagia on an acute care ward using Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles.BMJ open quality · 2023Article
- The prevalence and perceived effectiveness of using a medication-swallowing lubricant in aged care facilities across Australia.Aging medicine (Milton (N.S.W)) · 2023Article
- A Pilot Study on Pharmacists' Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices towards Medication Dysphagia via Asynchronous Online Focus Group Discussion.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Perceived Usability of Tablet Crushers: Comparison of Devices by People with and without Limited Hand Functions.Pharmaceutics · 2023Article
- Ionotropic Gelation and Chemical Crosslinking as Methods for Fabrication of Modified-Release Gellan Gum-Based Drug Delivery Systems.Pharmaceutics · 2022Review
- Identifying and addressing pill aversion in adults without physiological-related dysphagia: A narrative review.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2022Review
- Solid Oral Dosage Forms Use in Adults with Neurological Disorders and Swallowing Difficulties: A Scoping Review.Dysphagia · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Solid oral dosage forms such as tablets and capsules are generally the preferred method of drug delivery due to their convenience, cost, and acceptability. However, for many people, it can be a challenge to swallow solid oral medications, even those with healthy swallowing function. This review describes current strategies available to facilitate medication administration to otherwise healthy people with pill-swallowing difficulties. In general, restoring and maintaining the ability to swallow pills whole should ideally be the first choice in managing people with pill-swallowing difficulties. A number of strategies can potentially make it easier to swallow pills whole. These include postural adjustments, using pill-swallowing aids, and teaching pill-swallowing techniques. Where these are not successful or appropriate, then other approaches have to be considered using alternative formulations/routes of administration or deprescribing. If there is no other option, and it is not directly contraindicated for each specific medication dosage form, pills may be modified and mixed in foods and drinks to aid swallowing. In conclusion, people with pill-swallowing difficulties can benefit from a number of strategies designed to facilitate swallowing medications. However, these strategies should be further evaluated with regard to the evidence relating to both their efficacy and safety.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.