Craye Goedele, Mehuys Els, Schelfhout Sien, Vandermoere Jolien, Rousseau Jara, Petrovic Mirko, Boussery Koen, Vanhoorne Valérie
Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Pharmaceutical Care Unit, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Int J Clin Pharm. 2025 Jun 12. doi: 10.1007/s11096-025-01930-2.
Swallowing difficulties with oral solid dosage forms (OSDF) are common and can lead to clinical risks, requiring early detection and management.
To determine the prevalence of swallowing difficulties with OSDF among adult pharmacy visitors, identify patient characteristics, and evaluate the success of swallowing management strategies.
In an observational study across 10 Belgian community pharmacies from March to April 2022, adults using OSDF and reporting swallowing difficulties with at least one of these OSDF were enrolled. Patients who accepted to participate completed a questionnaire detailing patient characteristics and identifying medication causing reported swallowing difficulties along with their coping strategies. Community pharmacists recommended management strategies based on the Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS) guidance and followed up by telephone call after one week to evaluate success.
Among 3341 eligible pharmacy visitors, 197 (5.9%) reported swallowing difficulties with at least one OSDF. A total of 111 patients (mean age 57.9 ± 17.6, 79.3% female) were included, with 10.8% diagnosed with dysphagia. Few applied the recommended head forward posture (8.1%) and 54% used a sufficient amount of water. A total of 28.9% patients self-reported occasional medication skipping due to swallowing difficulties. The most common coping strategies included increased water intake (57.6%), mixing medication with food (32.1%) and modifying OSDF (28.2%). Pharmacists most often recommended proper pill swallowing technique (53.1%, 85/160) and combining correct pill swallowing technique with semi-solid food or swallowing gel (24.4%, 39/160). Follow-up revealed that 84.4% (135/160) of recommended management strategies were perceived as successful by the patients.
This study demonstrates that swallowing difficulties with OSDF are common, with a reported prevalence of 5.9%. Additionally, most patients benefited from management strategies recommended by the guidance. These findings highlight the importance of community pharmacists as gatekeepers for detecting and managing these challenges in primary care.
口服固体剂型（OSDF）吞咽困难很常见，可能导致临床风险，需要早期检测和管理。
确定成年药房访客中OSDF吞咽困难的患病率，识别患者特征，并评估吞咽管理策略的成效。
在2022年3月至4月对10家比利时社区药房进行的一项观察性研究中，纳入了使用OSDF且报告至少有一种OSDF存在吞咽困难的成年人。接受参与的患者完成了一份问卷，详细列出患者特征，并确定导致报告的吞咽困难的药物及其应对策略。社区药剂师根据专科药房服务（SPS）指南推荐管理策略，并在一周后通过电话随访以评估成效。
在3341名符合条件的药房访客中，197人（5.9%）报告至少有一种OSDF存在吞咽困难。共纳入111名患者（平均年龄57.9±17.6岁，79.3%为女性），其中10.8%被诊断为吞咽困难。很少有人采用推荐的头部前倾姿势（8.1%），54%的人使用了足够的水。共有28.9%的患者自我报告因吞咽困难偶尔漏服药物。最常见的应对策略包括增加饮水量（57.6%）、将药物与食物混合（32.1%）和改变OSDF（28.2%）。药剂师最常推荐正确的吞服技术（53.1%，85/160）以及将正确的吞服技术与半固体食物或吞咽凝胶相结合（24.4%，39/160）。随访显示，84.4%（135/160）的推荐管理策略被患者认为是成功的。
本研究表明，OSDF吞咽困难很常见，报告的患病率为5.9%。此外，大多数患者从指南推荐的管理策略中受益。这些发现凸显了社区药剂师作为初级保健中检测和管理这些挑战的把关人的重要性。
