Phillips-Medisize, Hudson, Wis.
Mini-pill dispenser (Image from Phillips-Medisize)
Large pills can be hard for kids, the elderly and cancer patients to swallow, and tiny pills can be difficult for some patients and caregivers to count accurately.
Phillips-Medisize (Hudson, Wis.) aims to solve both problems with a mini-tablet dispenser cap that fits on a standard prescription bottle. The company acquired the patent for the dispenser in a pharmaceutical company acquisition in 2019.
The dispenser uses mechanical features to pre-set and count the mini-tablets dispensed into the proper dose. It mounts directly onto a standard 38 mm-diameter prescription bottle or can be customized for other bottle formats. It dispenses one to 20 mini-tablets of approximately 2 to 2.5 mm in diameter at once, according to Bjørn Knud Andersen, director of front-end innovation and head of technology accelerators and intellectual property rights for Phillips-Medisize.
The user can confirm the measured tablet count through the transparent lid of the metering chamber before dispensing the medication. The dispenser is also designed to minimize the potential for damage or crushing of mini-tablets during dispensing, Andersen said.
The mini-tablet dispenser is a Class I medical device which needs no FDA clearance, and holds the CE Mark in Europe. It is ready for clinical trials or co-packaging for commercial launch, according to Andersen. Phillips-Medisize is marketing it to an array of pharmaceutical companies.
“We see the largest market potential for highly regulated healthcare areas where medication dosing is critical to patients’ well-being,” Andersen said. “These include pediatrics, geriatrics and oncology patients who may desire custom, highly flexible dosing and often find it easier to take small, easy-to-swallow tablets versus large pills or liquid medication.”
