Evaluation of Measuring Devices Packaged With Prescription Oral Liquid Medications

The US Food and Drug Administration industry guidelines for manufacturers of oral, over-the-counter, liquid medications recommend that these products be packaged with dosage-delivery devices. This study describes the prevalence of these devices and instructions packaged with prescription, oral, liquid medications.

This was a descriptive study of prescription oral-liquid medications dispensed during a 6-month period at a community pharmacy. Product information was obtained from the National Library of Medicine's DailyMed database and from the products themselves. Endpoints included provision of a measuring device, the type of device, the maximum dose measurable and intervals on the provided device, and inclusion of instructions to the pharmacist.

A total of 382 liquid prescription medications were included in the study. Forty-nine of the 382 products (12.8%) were packaged with a measuring device. The most commonly provided device was a calibrated dropper (n = 18; 36.7%), followed by an oral syringe with a bottle adaptor (n = 9, 18.4%). Specific instructions on proper use of the provided measuring device were included with 20 products (40.8%). Among the products that did not provide a measuring device, only 70 of the 333 package inserts (21%) included instructions to the pharmacist regarding counseling the patient on proper administration.

Packaging of prescription oral-liquid medications is inconsistent and leaves room for vast variability in patient or parent administration practices. In the future, patterns of actual dispensing practices among pharmacies and pharmacists would help determine the true incidence of dispensing of measuring devices.