GB2210014A

GB2210014A - A medicine and beverage package

Info

Publication number: GB2210014A
Application number: GB8722466A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Davina Mary Instone
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-09-24
Filing date: 1987-09-24
Publication date: 1989-06-01
Also published as: GB8722466D0

Abstract

A medicine package is provided which includes a medicine in solid form 18 and a vessel 12. The vessel contains a quantity of beverage 14 which is sufficient to help an individual take the medicine. The package further includes means 16, e.g. a sealing foil laminate, for releasably sealing the beverage in the vessel and means for preventing contact between the medicine and the beverage. The vessel may be of plastics material and may be bottle shaped, the medicine being located between a sealing means located across the top of the bottle and a scew cap (Figure 2). <IMAGE>

Description

A MEDICINE PACKAGE The present invention is concerned with a medicine package, and more particularly with a medicine package for helping an individual take a medicine.

Many of the medicines available at present are presented in the form of a solid for oral administration, such as for example pills, tablets and capsules. Many people experience difficulty in swallowing such medicines because of their unpleasant taste and unusual shape which often cause the medicine to become lodged in the back of the individual's mouth or in their throat. In view of this, many people find it beneficial to drink a beverage such as water or fruit juice after placing the medicine in their mouth to help them swallow the medicine.

However, an individual who has in their possession a solid medicine and wishes to take it may find that they are unable to obtain a supply of a suitable beverage. For instance, an individual may develop a headache whilst attending an outdoor concert, or develop travel sickness whilst travelling in a car. Although the individual may possess the appropriate tablets, it would be difficult for them to obtain a beverage. In these circumstances, the individual has to decide either to take the medicine without the benefit of an accompanying drink or not take the medicine at all.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a medicine package which overcomes this problem.

According to the present invention, there is provided a medicine package comprising: a medicine in solid form, a vessel, a beverage contained in the vessel, the quantity of which is sufficient to help an individual take the medicine, means for releasably sealing the beverage in the vessel, and means for preventing contact between the medicine and the beverage.

Such a package has the advantage that it contains both a medicine and a beverage to help an individual take the medicine.

Preferably the medicine is in the form of at least one pill, capsule or tablet. In some cases the package may contain a plurality of any of these forms. The medicine preferably comprises a pharmaceutical composition for the treatment of common ailments such as headaches, travel sickness, hay fever, colds, coughs, stomach upset, etc.

The beverage can be any liquid suitable for drinking, for instance water or a fruit juice. Orange juice is particularly preferred as this helps to conceal any unpleasant taste which the medicine may have.

It has been found that a volume of around 50 to 200 ml, and more preferably 100 ml of the beverage is sufficient for helping an individual to take the medicine.

In a preferred aspect of the invention, the means preventing contact between the beverage and the medicine forms part of the sealing means. This has the advantage of simplifying the construction of the package. Thus, if the sealing means is in the form of a laminate, the medicine may be located between its sheets. This has the advantages that the medicine is only released from the package when the sealing means is broken, and that the medicine is surrounded by the seal prior to it being taken thus preventing it from being contaminated.

The medicine may be soluble or be capable of being dispersed in the beverage. This has the advantage that once the medicine is released from the package by for instance breakage of the seal, the medicine can be dissolved or dispersed in the beverage whilst it is still in the vessel making it extremely easy to take the medicine.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a schematic sectional illustration of a package formed in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention, and Figure 2 is a schematic sectional illustration of a second embodiment of the invention.

Turning to Figure 1, this illustrates a medicine package 10 which comprises a vessel 12 in the form of a cup. The cup contains a beverage 14 which is sealed in the; cup by means of a releasable seal 16. The seal can be a single sealing foil sheet or in the form of a foil laminate (as illustrated) between whose layers a solid medicine 18 is located. The medicine may be in any solid form such as pills, capsules, tablets or the like. The medicine comprises a pharmaceutical composition which is formulated for the treatment of such ailments as headaches, travel sickness, hay fever, colds, coughs or stomach upsets.

At least the top layer of the sealing laminate 16 may be formed from transparent material to allow the medicine 18 to be seen without having to first break the seal.

The beverage 14 can be any drink which helps an individual to swallow the medicine 18. Examples of suitable beverages are water and fruit juice, and in particular mineral water and orange juice. It has been found that a quantity of between 50 and 200 ml. of the beverage and more preferably 100 ml. of the beverage is suitable for helping an individual to take the tablets.

The cup 12 may be formed from any suitable water tight material such as plastics, and in particular PVC, in view of its cheapness and mouldability. The cup has a height of about 4 cm., a top diameter of about 4 cm. and a base diameter of about 3 cm.

In use, the seal 16 is broken and the medicine 18 recovered from between the sheets of the laminate. The medicine is then placed in the mouth and washed down by drinking the beverage 14.

Alternatively, the medicine 18 may be soluble, or be capable of being dispersed, in the beverage 14. In this case, the seal 16 is broken and the medicine 18 deposited in the beverage 14. After allowing the medicine a suitable time to dissolve or disperse, the beverage is then drunk from the vessel 12.

A plurality of packages 10 may be formed into an array by releasably interconnecting together individual packages. For instance, the vessels 12 may be formed to have a substantially square cross-section at their top, and then formed into an n by n array by interconnecting the packages together at their tops.

Turning now to Figure 2, this illustrates a second embodiment of the invention where the vessel 22 is in the form of a small bottle which is sized to enable it to be carried around in a e.g. a pocket or a handbag or conven iently stored in the glove compartment of a car.

The bottle may be conveniently formed from any suitable plastics material, e.g. polythene. The bottle has a screw threaded neck 32 having a sealing member 26 located across its mouth. The sealing member may be constructed from a sealing foil or other suitable means. A top 38viz having a complimentary screw threaded inner surface 34 at its base is engageable with the screw thread 32 around the neck of the bottle. The top may be formed of any suitable material such as metal or plastics. A medicine 28 is located within a space bounded by the interior of the top and the sealing member 26. The top includes an integrally formed spike 36 for puncturing the sealing member.

In use, the top 38 is unscrewed, and the medicine 28 removed from within it. The top is then inverted and the spike 36 used to puncture the foil 26. This allows the beverage 24 to be swallowed once the medicine 28 has been placed in the mouth.

In each of the foregoing embodiments, matter may be printed on the vessel 12,22 or sealing member 16 indicating the nature of the pills contained together with the beverage.

Claims

1. A medicine package comprising: a medicine in solid form, a vessel, a beverage contained in the vessel, the quantity of which is sufficient to help an individual take the medicine, means for releasably sealing the beverage in the vessel, and means for preventing contact between the medicine and the beverage.

2. A medicine package according to claim 1 wherein the medicine is in the form of at least one pill, capsule or tablet.

3. A medicine package according to claim 1 wherein the medicine is in the form of a plurality of pills, capsules or tablets.

4. A medicine package according to any preceding claim wherein the medicine comprises a pharmaceutical composition for the treatment of headaches, travel sickness, hay fever, colds, coughs, or stomach upset.

5. A medicine package according to any preceding claim wherein the medicine is soluble, or is capable of being dispersed in the beverage.

6. A medicine package according to any preceding claim wherein the beverage is water or a fruit juice.

7. A medicine package according to claim 6 wherein the beverage is mineral water or orange juice.

8. A medicine package according to any preceding claim comprising from 50 to 200 ml of the beverage.

9. A medicine package according to claim 8 comprising about 100 ml of the beverage.

10. A medicine package according to any preceding claim wherein the vessel is formed at least partly from plastics material.

11. A medicine package according to any preceding claim wherein the means for preventing contact between the beverage and the medicine forms part of the sealing means.

12. A medicine package according to any preceding claim wherein the vessel is in the form of a cup and the releasable sealing means is in the form of a lid located across the mouth of the cup.

13. A medicine package according to claim 12 wherein the lid comprises a sealing laminate and the medicine is located between the sheets of the laminate.

14. A medicine package according to claim 13 wherein the sealing laminate is constructed from foil.

15. A package according to any of claims 12-14 wherein the cup is formed from P.V.C.

16. An array consisting of a plurality of packages constructed in accordance with any preceding claim, the containers being releasably interconnected together to form the array.

17. A medicine package according to any of claims 1-11 wherein the vessel is in the form of a bottle.

18. A medicine package according to claim 17 wherein the bottle is formed from polythene.

19. A medicine package according to claim 17 or claim 18 wherein the sealing means is located across the mouth of the bottle.

20. A medicine package according to claim 19 wherein the sealing means is constructed from foil.

21. A medicine package according to claim 19 or claim 20 further comprising a top releasably engageable over the mouth of the bottle, the medicine being located within a space bounded by the interior of the top and the sealing means.

22. A medicine package according to claim 21 wherein the top includes an integrally formed spike for puncturing the sealing means.

23. A medicine package substantially as described herein with reference to Figure 1.

24. A medicine package substantially as described herein with reference to Figure 2.