Table 5.
Comments of Patients about Various Routes of Application
| Oral | Inhaled | Sublingual | Intranasal | Buccal | Transmucosal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Administration | “Hard without water” | “Difficult to get it right, especially for older people” | “Mechanically easy” | “It is difficult to use if you have your oxygen on” | “More difficult than the sublingual tablet” | “Easy handling for yourself” |
| Effect on breathing | “Swallow is difficult when you're breathless” | “Difficult to hold your breath while you are breathless” | “Doesn't affect the breathing” | “It affects the breathing” You still have your mouth to gape for air” |
- | “You can breathe parallel” |
| Previous experience | “Don't like tablets” | “Very good experiences” | “Good experiences with the ‘heartspray’ under the tongue” | - | - | - |
| Adverse effects | “Choking” “Vomiting” “Fear of suffocation” |
- | “Fear of ulcers” Falls out of the mouth” |
“Affects the nasal mucosa” | “Falls out” | “Vomit” “Collects germs” |
| Comfort/ discomfort | “Socially discreet” | - | “Easy handling for carers” | “Easy for relatives and carers” | “Difficult for patients with dental prosthesis” | “Much easier for carers” “Calming just because of the procedure” |
| Speed of action | “Take too long” | “It acts quickly” | “Have to dissolve until it acts” | - | “Dissolving takes too long” | - |