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Health Care Professionals Can Help Patients Stop Crushing Pills
Award-Winning Device Helps Patients Swallow Pills Easily
10/16/2007

Raritan, NJ - Recent warnings from health care groups have revealed that crushing pills to make them easier to swallow can cause serious side-effects.

“Pills often have special coatings that affect how they are released into the body and crushing them can mean this complex system is disturbed,” says Roger Heilos, president and founder of Oralflo Technologies. “Although rare, serious conditions have occurred when patients and health care providers crushed certain medications in order to administer.”

Heilos points to a few examples of drugs that shouldn’t be crushed.

Crushing tamoxifen could result in the person who is breaking up the tablet breathing in medication, which can be particularly dangerous if they are pregnant. Crushing morphine could lead to a fatally fast release of the drug. Nifedipine, the angina and blood pressure drug, can cause dizziness, headaches and an increased risk of stroke or heart attack when crushed up.

“Research has shown 80% of nurses in care homes resort to crushing tablets to help residents take medicines,” says Heilos, a former medical products engineer for Johnson & Johnson. “Plus it’s estimated that up to 40% of the population have trouble swallowing pills from time to time. That’s why I invented the Oralflo Pill Swallowing Cup.”

Designed for those who have pill swallowing difficulties, the Oralflo Pill Swallowing Cup™ is a breakthrough, award-winning medical device. It alleviates the discomfort and anxiety associated with pilltaking and proves itself a vital accessory for doctor's offices, hospitals, group homes, day care centers and concerned family members.

The unique design of the Oralflo Pill Swallowing Cup also eliminates the need to cut and crush pills so they can be swallowed whole, which is required for time-released and coated pills. The cup is a professional healthcare product that is patent pending, trademarked and registered with the FDA as a Class III medical device.

Heilos recommends that doctors check if patients are comfortable swallowing pills when they first issue the prescriptions and if they are not, that they offer ways for patients to take the much-needed medications. “Offer patients a pill swallowing cup or find an alternative to the pill,” he says.

About Oralflo Technologies In 2003, Roger Heilos established Oralflo Technologies, LLC as a result of his creation of the Oralflo Pill Swallowing Cup™. Having seen members of his own family suffer the anguish of pill swallowing anxiety and realizing how frequently this problem occurs in children, adults, and the elderly, Heilos was inspired to bring out a product that has the potential to make the lives of so many pill-takers easier. The cup has been named one of the best products of 2007 by iParenting Media.

Company Bio: Oralflo Technologies designs and manufactures superior quality medical products that facilitate treatment while enhancing the relationship between healthcare consumers and their physicians and care givers. Our products address the unique challenges faced by this industry so that more individuals may reap the benefits of good health and longevity.

SOURCE: Oralflo Technologies

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