The Crystals that Wiped Out a Medication

This sounds like the perfect plot for horror movie, except somehow its real life.

I like the conclusion that Science cannot solve everything. Many laymen of Science erroneously think that it should solve every problem.

I wonder if monochromatic light, possibly from a tuned laser, could control isomorphic transition and selection? Preventing the absolute absence of an undesired isomorphic seed might make this still an impossible problem.

That might work, pumping to a higher energy level and allowing it to decay to the desired state, sort of analogous to how a pumped laser works. (With only 2 levels, you would encourage as many down jumps as up jumps.)

It occurred to me thinking about tin pest, that perhaps the answer lies in the purity at the time of crystallization. I have noticed over the years that tin alloys with lead remain alloyed and strong for decades whereas the newer tin/gallium or whatever lead-free solders don't. The tin changes crystalline form even though it is mixed with another metal, except in the case of lead.
Perhaps there is a salt that can be mixed with the drug before it is dried that discourages the formation of crystals in the first place much like lead prevents tin pest?
The idea here is that they are making it as pure as possible, and perhaps that is what NOT to do with such a substance. Instead make it impure by design. "Alloy" it with another soluble salt or soluble carrier that prevents the molecules from crystalizing at all or very little. The problem isn't the crystals it's the solubility when they are ingested. If the substance is mixed with a carrier that prevents crystals from forming in the first place it can solve the solubility problem in delivery..

I'm glad they reposted this thread! I saw it at least once before, but didn't have time to watch the video. This time I did, and I'm glad I did! (...and I watched it at bedtime.)

I was totally unaware of the incidents! It is indeed scary!