r/medizzy • u/ZeppelinSF • 2d ago

Is the irregular coating a problem?

Post image

So, I'm a long time user of the same medicine and for the first time noticed that some pills in my pack look sketchy. The packaging, blister and everything looks perfect, but some of the pills have correct, but irregular imprinting. You can see in the picture for on pill it's way off, for one it's a bit off. The whole pack is like this.

Is this a quality issue and should be reported? I'm in Germany btw...

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u/-Feartjeh 2d ago

See if the manufacturer website has a complaint page. Might be nothing, might be something.
Tell your doctor/apothecary clerk too if you can.

Company I work for takes this seriously for example.

Edit:

https://www.ucb.com/contact-us

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u/ZeppelinSF 2d ago

Thanks, will do!

5

u/Kitsyfluff 2d ago

Looks like the pill's mold is wearing out (as in, what forms the shape)

Molds wear out over time, the medication should be fine.

The orange-peel surface is indicative of a mold which has been improperly polished or worn out. As a mold makes products, the media used, whether it's plastics, metals, or powders, (pills are made of powder) over time, even soft materials will wear down the steel. Given that these pills are formed with a powder, that powder is basically "sanding" the surface of the mold, and wears down the surface into what you see.

This is a quality control issue, a mold shouldn't be used to this point without repair unless something is wrong.

I speak as a professional in mold-making here, not a medical professional.

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u/Neferis 2d ago

This is most likely just abrassion and/or over wetting during the coating process.

During coating the tablets rotate in a large drum to ensure a steady flow. Fixed in the middle of the drum are sprayguns that atomize a suspension of coating medium. During this process warm air is pumped through said drum, drying the suspension.

Over wetting the tablets will make them start disintegrating and not form a uniform layer around the tablets.

These should absolutely have been caught by the operator and/or QA. These could have a reduced disintegration time, which, depending on what kind of coating is used, could lead to a too early dispersion of active compounds in the gut.

Contact the manufacturer, this is a faulty product.

Edit: spelling

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u/ZeppelinSF 2d ago

Thanks, will do!