Pharmaceutical capsule container vial with window

Abstract

A pharmaceutical capsule container comprises (i) a novel vial having a closed-bottom window formed from a transparent polymer, and a side-wall formed from a light-blocking polymer, and (ii) a safety cap. The vial is made as one piece by dual injection molding. The window serves as a clear-view window through which a pharmacist may view capsules inside a closed capsule container. In a preferred embodiment the window serves as a magnifying lens for easier recognition of capsule indicia. A pharmacist uses the invention to re-verify the type and strength of the capsules in a filled, closed capsule container against the type and strength specified in the prescription by viewing the capsules in the filled, closed capsule container. The pharmacist holds the capsule container upright and looks up to view the capsules in the container through the window in the bottom of the vial This enables the pharmacist to re-verify a prescription without being required to remove and replace the safety cap every time a prescription is filled.

Description

[0001]This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application 61 / 031,041 61 / 039,980 filed 25 Feb. 2008, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD[0002]The present invention relates to the field of pharmaceutical capsule or tablet containers that have child-resistant safety caps, containers of the type used for filling pharmaceutical prescriptions in retail pharmacies.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Filling a prescription in a retail pharmacy for pharmaceutical capsules or tablets requires re-packaging an appropriate number of the pharmaceutical capsules or tablets into a child-resistant sealable container. This process requires re-verification, by a pharmacist, for every prescription filled. The pharmacist must verify that the filled container contains capsules or tablets of the exact type and strength as specified in the prescription. Pharmaceutical capsule or tablet containers used in the pharmaceutical industry typically consist of a cy...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0013]The invention provides a novel pharmaceutical capsule container comprising (i) a novel vial having a closed-bottom window formed from a transparent polymer, and a side-wall formed from a light-blocking polymer, and (ii) a safety cap. The vial is made as one piece by dual injection molding. The window serves as a clear-view window through which a pharmacist may view capsules inside a closed capsule container. In a preferred embodiment the window serves as a magnifying lens for easier recognition of capsule indicia. A pharmacist uses the invention to re-verify the type and strength of the capsules in a filled, closed capsule container against the type and strength specified in the prescription by viewing the capsules in the filled, closed capsule container. The pharmacist holds the capsule container upright and looks up to view the capsules in the container through the window in the bottom of the vial This enables the pharmacist to re-verify a prescription without being required to remove and replace the safety cap every time a prescription is filled.

Problems solved by technology

The pharmacist must remove the cap in order to see at least one capsule because (i) the standard vial used for dispensing medications in retail pharmacies in the United States is made of a translucent plastic material that is colored amber to protect the medication inside from light, which makes it difficult to discern indicia and impossible to verify color; (ii) the pharmacy label typically wraps around a large part of the cylindrical wall of the vial making it difficult for the pharmacist to view the capsules through the wall; (iii) most safety caps include indicia to indicate the directions for removing the safety cap, so caps that are white and opaque and also carry print to display the pharmacy name, are impossible to see though, and caps that are colored amber and have indicia molded in relief into an inner or outer surface make it difficult or impossible for the pharmacist to accurately discern the color code or the identification number of the capsules when attempting view capsules through the cap.

Furthermore, the requirement on the pharmacist to repeatedly remove safety caps from their containers to re-verify the contents of a sealed container, increases the burden on the pharmacist, and increases the risk of error during re-verification.

Also, it has been observed that molded relief features in safety caps create chafing and discomfort on the hands of pharmacists who must open and close a great number of vials during the course of a work day.

Even worse, the pharmacist runs the risk of serious internal repetitive motion injury.

A problem arises when a pharmacy gets busy.

This may be adequate in most circumstances, but it is dangerous.

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