KarenP asked
Hello, For the past few days I have noticed urocit k pills that I take have been passing through my system. I take 1620mg, once daily and have been on it for a little over a year. I have never noticed this issue prior but just may have missed it. I called the doctor's office and they told me that it is completely normal with that medication, which eased my mind a bit, but is it normal for it to happen on consecutive days, or is it something that happens sporadically? What passes looks just like the pill and is mushy. In that case is the medication still working? This morning at 7:30 I took it as usual and it passed in the afternoon around 3. How many hours do these slow release tablets take in order to be effective after I take them? Again according to the nurse this is common and the doc won't make any changes. I guess I just need to see it in writing to be reassured that it is working even with this occurring. Thank you.
Answer
There is no doubt that one may be surprised to see the tablet they took earlier in the day end up in the stool. Believe it or not, there’s a name for these and it is very common depending on the drug. They’re called “ghost tablets.” Ghost tablets can look just like a pill you have taken, or like a small soft/mushy mass. If you see a ghost tablet, there’s no need to be alarmed or scared. It doesn’t mean the pill didn’t work. It is due to the release mechanism of the medication you are taking. Some pills are broken down after you swallow them and travel through your gut. However, many pills are not broken down in your gut. Similar to the way you can sometimes see certain foods like corn in your stool, these pills leave ghost tablets.
Urocit-K has a unique drug delivery system known as the "Wax-Matrix System".These systems deliver the medication slowly in your body over an extended period of time which allows for less frequent dosing that what would otherwise be required. Often times the wax coating on the tablet is NOT broken down as it passes through the body. All the medication gets released through a tiny hole in the tablet while the outer shell remains intact.
There are over 20 drugs that are "ghost tablets" including:
- Allegra-D
- Concerta
- Ditropan XL
- Wellbutrin XL
