Drug Forms and Routes of Administration. Before FDA approval Rx company must clearly state in what form or forms the drug will be manufactured Rx company.

Drug Forms and Routes of Administration

Before FDA approval

• Rx company must clearly state in what form or forms the drug will be manufactured

• Rx company must clearly state what routes of administration are determined safe and effective

Tablets

• Drug form which contains dried powdered active drug

• Contains binders and fillers to provide bulk and proper size

• Many different types of tablets

• Indented line running across the top

• Can easily be broken into two pieces with a knife to produce two doses

Scored Tablets

• Covered with a special coating that resists stomach acid but dissolves in the alkaline environment in small intestines

Enteric Tablets

Slow-release Tablet

• Provide a continuous, sustained release of a certain drug

• Abb as SR slow-release or LA long acting

Caplets- Tablets

• Coated tablets in the shape of a capsule

• Easier to swallow

Lozenges- Tablets

• Formed with a harden base of sugar , water and flavorings

• never swallow

• dissolve slowly in mouth

Capsule

• Comes in two varieties

• generally easier to swallow

Soft gelatin- Capsule

• Manufactured in one piece in which the drug is in a liquid form inside the soft shell

Hard shell- Capsule

• Manufactured in two pieces that fit together and hold the drug which is in a powder or granular form

Creams

• A semisolid emulsion of oil and water- main ingredient water

• emulsifying agent added to keep mixed

Ointment

• Semisolid emulsion of oil and water- main ingredient oil

• normally applied to skin without precise measurement nitroglycerin- exception

Lotion

• Suspenion of an active drug in a water base

Powder• Finely ground form of an active drug

• can be contained in a capsule

• glass vials- sterile water

• packaged- water

Liquids

• Comes in one of 2 forms- Solution or suspension

• Solution never need to be mixed

• Solution drug fully dissolved

Types of Solutions

• Elixirs-alcohol & water base with added sugar & flavoring

• Syrups-sugar, water & flavoring thicker

• Tinctures- alcohol & water base used topically

Liquid Sprays

• Water & alcohol base

• pump or aerosol spray

• some dispened as foams

Suspensions

• Contain fine, undissolved particles of a drug suspended in a liquid base

• Important to always shake before use

Suspension Types

• Water base- distilled or sterile

• emulsion- fat particles & water

• gel-suspended in a thicken water medium- does not have to be shaken

Suppository

• A solid base of glycerin or cocoa butter containing the drug

• Rectal or Vaginal

• Adult or pediatric sizes

Transdermal

• Consist of a multi-layered disk of a drug reservoir, a porous membrane and a adhesive layer to it to the skin

• Patches

Pellet/Bead

• Drug can be implanted in the body in the form of a pellet or bead that slowly releases into tissue