Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34575599›Full record

ArticlePharmaceutics2021

Tablet Splitting in Elderly Patients with Dementia: The Case of Quetiapine.

Roberta Ganzetti, Serena Logrippo, Matteo Sestili, Alessandro Caraffa, Marco Cespi, Giuseppe Pelliccioni, Paolo Blasi, Giulia Bonacucina

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Pharmaceutics, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
2.7field-weighted citation impact, top 10% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 9 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Comparison of tablet splitting techniques for dosing accuracy of nebivolol tablets: Hand splitting versus tablet cutter and knife.Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2021
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.

Roberta GanzettiHospital Pharmacy, IRCCS INRCA, Via della Montagnola 81, 60127 Ancona, Italy.
Serena LogrippoSchool of Specialization in Hospital Pharmacy, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-5514-8043
Matteo SestiliHospital Pharmacy, ASUR Marche, Area Vasta 2, 60127 Ancona, Italy.
Alessandro CaraffaHospital Pharmacy, Hospital S. Maria Della Misericordia, S. Andrea delle Fratte, 06156 Perugia, Italy.
Marco CespiSchool of Pharmacy, University of Camerino, Via Gentile III da Varano, 62032 Camerino, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-6916-7915
Giuseppe PelliccioniDepartment of Neurology, IRCCS INRCA, Via della Montagnola 81, 60127 Ancona, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-0377-9713
Paolo BlasiDepartment of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Via San Donato 19/2, 40127 Bologna, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-8543-4275
Giulia BonacucinaSchool of Pharmacy, University of Camerino, Via Gentile III da Varano, 62032 Camerino, Italy.
Università di Camerino · ITIstituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico · ITAzienda Ospedaliera di Perugia · ITMarche Polytechnic University · ITUniversity of Bologna · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Quetiapine is an atypical antipsychotic approved for treating schizophrenia, bipolar depression, and mania but is frequently used in an off-label manner to control the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia in elderly patients with dementia. Due to the need to personalize doses for elderly patients with dementia, quetiapine tablet manipulation is widespread in hospital settings, long-term care facilities, and patient homes. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the different splitting techniques on quetiapine fumarate tablets by analysing the obtained sub-divided tablets and to discuss compliance with the European Pharmacopoeia limits on whole and split tablets. Quetiapine fumarate tablets of two dose strengths were taken at random (in a number able to assure a power of 0.8 during statistical comparison) and were split with a kitchen knife or tablet cutter. The weight and the drug content were determined for each half tablet. The obtained data were compared to the European Pharmacopoeia limits. The differences between the different splitting techniques were statistically tested. Data showed that split tablets, independently of the dose strength and the technique employed, were not compliant with the European Pharmacopoeia specifications for both entire and subdivided tablets in terms of weight and content uniformity. Thus, such a common practice could have potential effects on treatment efficacy and toxicity, especially when also considering the fragility of the elderly target population in which polypharmacotherapy is very common. These results indicate a compelling need for flexible quetiapine formulations that can assure more accurate dose personalization.

Indexed as

behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementiaBPSDcompoundingdysphagiakitchen knifetablet cuttertablet splitter

Identifiers

PMID34575599
PMCPMC8469994
OpenAlexW3200864393

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.