[Modification of solid dosage forms: survey in a hospital of the Province of Cordoba]

In the hospital setting is frequent to manipulate solid dosage forms (SDF, tablets 16 and capsules), which can affect their physicochemical and biopharmaceutical properties, the pharmacoloeffect and sometimes to cause the appearance of undesirable side effects.

To identify the medicines whose SDF is altered in a Hospital of Cordoba (Argentina), to determine how these modifications are made and to establish whether they were properly performed or not.

We retrospectively analyzed the prescriptions made between the 5th and the 11th of March of 2012 and identified impaired requesting SDF modifications. Open interviews were held with nurses and service visits to each hospital to determine how they manipulated the SDF.

We analyzed 700 prescriptions for 113 patients, of which 61 (54%) had manipulations of the received SDF (49 for medical prescription, 7 because they had nasogastric tubes, 3 due to patient choice and 2 by nursing decision). Twenty three medicines were manipulated, but only 12 were correctly manipulated. The major changes were partition of tablets and grinding of tablets or microgranules and dispersible in water.

The SDF of several medicines is altered in the analyzed hospital, many times without medical indication and scientific justification. It would be appropriate to conduct training courses and establish closer collaborations between pharmacy and nursing units in the investigated hospital.