How to crush a pill into a capsule
February 17, 2023 12:07 PM Subscribe
I have a family member with sensory issues that make it impossible for them to swallow tablets. To get around this I split their prescription tablets into pieces and put the pieces into capsules, which they are able to swallow. I would like to crush the pills instead of cutting them, but haven't figured out a good way to get the resulting powder into capsules.
Crushing the pills and mixing the powder with food is a non-starter. Please don't suggest it. The taste of the medicine is unbearable for my family member, no matter what we mix it with. Believe me, that way lies insanity. We've tried.
Splitting the pills works, but there are problems with it. It is time consuming, and it leaves a lot of empty space in the capsules, requiring my family member to swallow a larger number of capsules. I could reduce the number of capsules and maybe save time if I could crush the pills.
The pill crushers I've seen put the resulting powder into a cup that's designed to be dumped out into food. I don't want that. I want a pill crusher that will put the resulting powder into some sort of reservoir that would let me easily transfer it to a capsule. Does such a thing exist? Do you have any other suggestions as to how I might crush pills and get the results easily into capsules?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions you have.
Crushing the pills and mixing the powder with food is a non-starter. Please don't suggest it. The taste of the medicine is unbearable for my family member, no matter what we mix it with. Believe me, that way lies insanity. We've tried.
Splitting the pills works, but there are problems with it. It is time consuming, and it leaves a lot of empty space in the capsules, requiring my family member to swallow a larger number of capsules. I could reduce the number of capsules and maybe save time if I could crush the pills.
The pill crushers I've seen put the resulting powder into a cup that's designed to be dumped out into food. I don't want that. I want a pill crusher that will put the resulting powder into some sort of reservoir that would let me easily transfer it to a capsule. Does such a thing exist? Do you have any other suggestions as to how I might crush pills and get the results easily into capsules?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions you have.
This is the sort of thing a good pharmacist should be able to do for you. Even Walgreens can do some compounding. I don't have any experience with this but it's absolutely worth looking into rather than trying to get this right on your own.
posted by BungaDunga at 12:18 PM on February 17, 2023 [14 favorites]
posted by BungaDunga at 12:18 PM on February 17, 2023 [14 favorites]
If you look up "capsule fillers," you'll find a whole range of different kinds (they range from expensive commercial grade/size ones to basic, inexpensive ones that are basically a tray that holds open capsules). They're designed to fill up capsules pretty completely without spillage. Also, you can buy empty, bulk gelatin capsules in a range of sizes online.
You've probably already done this, but if you haven't, check with the dispensing pharmacist to make sure that the pills in question can be safely crushed and administered that way (some pills come in a time-release formulation, and crushing them defeats the time release formulation, which can be either therapeutically undesirable or dangerous depending on the particular drug).
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:21 PM on February 17, 2023 [4 favorites]
You've probably already done this, but if you haven't, check with the dispensing pharmacist to make sure that the pills in question can be safely crushed and administered that way (some pills come in a time-release formulation, and crushing them defeats the time release formulation, which can be either therapeutically undesirable or dangerous depending on the particular drug).
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:21 PM on February 17, 2023 [4 favorites]
I feel your pain. My concern would be that not all the crushed medicine would make its way into the capsules, messing up the dosage. Definitely talk to the pharmacist—they solve problems like this every day and may be able to order the meds in capsule form.
posted by corey flood at 12:40 PM on February 17, 2023
posted by corey flood at 12:40 PM on February 17, 2023
Could you coat the pill instead? Not sure if viable but there are products to coat pill (medicoat) that might make it easier to swallow and more capsule-like without putting into capsule.
posted by countrymod at 1:29 PM on February 17, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by countrymod at 1:29 PM on February 17, 2023 [2 favorites]
Have you/the patient spoken to the prescribing doctor and the pharmacist about alternative medication? They may be able to prescribe/recommend alternatives that are in capsule or other more suitable form.
posted by koahiatamadl at 2:54 PM on February 17, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by koahiatamadl at 2:54 PM on February 17, 2023 [3 favorites]
Nthing that this is a problem for a pharmacist. If it's safe/effective to crush the pills and put them in capsules, a compounding pharmacist should be able to do it for you.
posted by praemunire at 3:15 PM on February 17, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by praemunire at 3:15 PM on February 17, 2023 [1 favorite]
without getting into whether it is a good idea, which others have covered: am I understanding that the issue is physically getting a little pile of powder into a capsule?
an icing tip like this would act as a small funnel. I'd have the small capsule side standing up, supported on something (you could carve a bit of styrofoam or cardboard, for instance), with the tip braced up into it like a funnel; crush the powder onto a piece of paper, curl the paper to pour the paper into the funnel. use small brush like a clean eyeshadow brush to make sure everything gets down where it's supposed to be.
posted by fingersandtoes at 3:24 PM on February 17, 2023
an icing tip like this would act as a small funnel. I'd have the small capsule side standing up, supported on something (you could carve a bit of styrofoam or cardboard, for instance), with the tip braced up into it like a funnel; crush the powder onto a piece of paper, curl the paper to pour the paper into the funnel. use small brush like a clean eyeshadow brush to make sure everything gets down where it's supposed to be.
posted by fingersandtoes at 3:24 PM on February 17, 2023
I had to deal with something similar with a sick cat needing to take a non-integer multiple of 2 different medication pills every day. I ended up finding a way to cut the pills, and then kind of Jenga/Tetris them into a single gelcap. This required finding the perfect gelcap size. Have you tried different gelcap sizes?
Also, I feel like powdered pills may not pack as well into a gelcap as you think (some medications are pretty "fluffy" when powdered). I would definitely test this out before committing.
+1 to others saying to check with a compounding pharmacy.
posted by soylent00FF00 at 4:08 PM on February 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
Also, I feel like powdered pills may not pack as well into a gelcap as you think (some medications are pretty "fluffy" when powdered). I would definitely test this out before committing.
+1 to others saying to check with a compounding pharmacy.
posted by soylent00FF00 at 4:08 PM on February 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
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In either case, you may want to look into a compounding pharmacy, which may be able to turn those tablets into capsules for you.
posted by emelenjr at 12:17 PM on February 17, 2023 [25 favorites]