ArticleBJGP open2022
Concerns regarding tablet splitting: a systematic review.
Article in BJGP open, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- A systematic review of manipulations to pharmaceutical dosage forms used in psychotropic tapering plans.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2025Pooled it
- Dose Accuracy and Content Uniformity of Low-Dose Metoprolol Tablets: 3D Printing Compared with Tablet Splitting in Hospital Pharmacy Setting.Pharmaceutics · 2026Article
- Comparison of two tablet splitting methods on mass loss and weight uniformity by nurses in North West Ethiopia.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Enhanced CYP2C19-mediated drug-drug interaction risk with escitalopram in geriatric populations.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Article
- Economic assessment of potential changes to essential medicines for diabetes in Uganda.PloS one · 2025Article
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- Practices and perceptions around splitting of carbidopa/levodopa tablets: a survey of patients and neurologists.Neurodegenerative disease managementArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundTablet splitting can provide dose flexibility and cost savings; however, pharmaceutical representatives typically discourage the practice.
aimTo identify and summarise all published concerns related to tablet splitting and to present the experimental evidence that investigates those concerns. DESIGN &
settingSystematic review and qualitative synthesis of tablet-splitting concerns and evidence.
methodMedline and EMBASE databases were searched over all years of publication for articles in English discussing the splitting of tablets. Eligible articles included original research, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, and expert opinion.
resultsAfter removing duplicates, 1837 potentially relevant articles underwent dual review, whereupon 1612 articles were excluded based on title and abstract. After examination of 225 full texts, 138 articles were included (one systematic review, four narrative reviews, 101 original research articles, and 32 opinion articles). The described concerns included difficulty breaking tablets, loss of mass, weight variability, chemical instability, overly rapid dosing if sustained-release medications are split, non-compliance, and patient confusion resulting in medication errors. No substantive evidence was found to support concerns regarding loss of mass, weight variability, chemical instability, or non-compliance. Evidence does support some older adults struggling to split tablets without tablet splitters, and the inappropriateness of splitting sustained-release preparations, given the potential for alteration of the rate of drug release for some products.
conclusionWith the exception of sustained-release tablets, which should not be split, and excepting those older people who may struggle to split tablets based on physical limitations, there is little evidence to support tablet-splitting concerns.
Indexed as
Identifiers
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.