Question:
Prescription med comes in gel cap only. Open?
I have a prescription med that comes in gel cap only. I opened it up last night and inside is not powder but rather a soft gooey liquid. The caps are small so I think that if I tried to extract it all from the cap, I wouldn't be successful and would lose some of the medication. Is there anything I can do to make it absorb better such as puncture the gel cap before taking it? — susanje (posted on March 2, 2003)
March 2, 2003
I've had gel caps post op with no problems that I'm aware of. Why do you
need to break it open???
— Danmark
March 2, 2003
Gel Caps are actually absorbed pretty well post op. Much better than a
hard pill. You should be fine taking it.
— Linda A.
March 2, 2003
is this more wls "urban myth"? I read on here, more than once
(and once in the past few days), that we don't absorb gel caps. It would
be great if that's not true. Thanks.
— susanje
March 2, 2003
It's my understanding that we don't absorb capsules, not gelcaps. I have
had nothing but tylenol gelcaps since my surgery for headaches. And my
headaches have gone away each time I take them. That can only bring me to
assume that I am absorbing them. I honestly think it was capsules that I
read we don't absorb. Gelcaps are okay. I hope that helps.
— Laurel C.
March 2, 2003
Quote from my instruction booklet: "Gastric Bypass patients cannot
absorb supplements or medications delivered in oil form or timed release.
They must be water soluble form" Now i don't know for sure if gel
caps are considered oil inside but it seems they would be. i know those
Vit. D gel caps are a no no. Just my 2cts.
— Delores S.
March 2, 2003
ASK YOUR PHARMACIST!!! Never crush pills or open capsules or extract
liquids without asking first! In a gelcap, the liquid could be and upper
GI irritant - not something to deal with after WLS. Most medications that
come in a special form are that way for a reason, not necessarily to look
pretty, so ask before you do it. It affect the way the medication in
absorbed by your body, as the medicine may be meant to be absorbed farther
along in the GI tract.
— koogy
March 2, 2003
I did ask my pharmacist. First I asked if there was an alternate way of
taking this (another form) and was told no, that is what that comes in.
Then I asked if it was okay to break it open. Told pharmacist about
gastric bypass and malabsorption. Pharmacist looked at me like I was from
Mars and pretty much shrugged it off.
— susanje
March 2, 2003
I was told to if whatever medication you are trying to take does not
dissolve in a glass of water in 20 minutes it won't dissolve in your pouch.
It is my understanding that geltabs rely on digestive juices to dissolve. I
tried putting one of the harder geltabs in water and it didn't dissolve
within HOURS.
— sheltie
March 2, 2003
I read the advice on this list and take it all with a grain of salt, do a
little more research on my own, then do what works for ME. My advice to
you...regarding this medicine, is it the kind where you can TELL whether or
not it's working? If so, take it the "regular" way and see if
your symptoms go away. I take Tylenol sinus in gel cap form and regardless
of what I've heard from reading here, it works for ME, my sinus symptoms go
right away. If this medicine is the kind where taking it doesn't alleviate
any sort of symptom, then refer to your surgeon to see if there is an
alternate medicine or whether it comes in a different form (don't just take
the pharmacist's word that it doesn't, just like s/he didn't know about
malabsorption, they don't know everything). Good luck and God Bless!
— Kimberly L.
March 2, 2003
Gel caps are just that: gelatin. Think hard jello. They dissolve in saliva.
I also put one in water & 5 hours later had a hunk of
"lasagne"! But it dissolved in under 4 min in my mouth. Goes
mooshy first, releases the content and then melts away. Like jello, it
gets soft as it warms, but doesn't vanish instantly. Now, what's INSIDE
may not absorb well, but the gelatin outside will melt in saliva. What's
inside is a separate issue. Timed release little balls or oil-based stuff
may not have full absorption in BPD or RNY. But the "shell"
isn't the criteria to use.
— vitalady
Click Here to Return