The major advantage of pharmaceutical powder is that it is more convenient to swallow than tablet and capsule dosage forms, although the use of pharmaceutical powders in therapeutics is limited.
The pharmaceutical powder is a dry, solid substance, composed of finely divided medicinal and non-medicinal drugs for internal or external use, with or without any excipients. It is a solid dosage form of a thinly divided state usually obtained by grinding, crushing, or commuting. There are two types of powder are used for drug delivery or therapeutic use, bulk powder for internal use and bulk powder for external use.
Advantages of pharmaceutical powders:
- The powder dosage form is more versatile and convenient to prescribe and administer, particularly for children and the adult patient who have trouble swallowing tablets or capsules or caplets.
- As compared to other dosage forms it provides rapid dispersion of drugs in the stomach (acidic condition) when given in the powdered form.
- The rate of dissolution of oral powders of water-soluble drugs is generally higher than that of tablets or capsules, in that disintegration of the tablet or capsule shell is necessary before dissolution.
- As compared to liquid dosage form it has less incompatibility.
- The unlimited amount of a unique mix of ingredients can only be possible in powder, not in capsules and tablets.
- The powder is a good choice for delivering the medication in bulk; it can be administered by mixing with foods or drinks.
- A powder can be swallowed more easily in water or any other liquid.
- Its manufacturing process is simple and does not require expensive equipment such as a compression machine, coating pan, and granulation, etc. Therefore, the product is quite economical as compared to other dosage forms.
Disadvantages of pharmaceutical powders:
- The major disadvantage of pharmaceutical powder is that it cannot prevent the unpleasant taste and odor of the drug.
- It cannot control the release rate of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API).
- The drugs that are hygroscopic or deliquescent, volatile, oxygen-sensitive, and amorphous are difficult to formulate.
- It does not maintain physical and chemical integrity by protecting it from humidity, heat, and temperature.
- Powders do not have dose accuracy, like tablets and capsules; they have a stable dose, high precision, and the lowest variability.
- Pharmaceutical powders are bulky and inconvenient to carry and dispense.
Commonly asked questions on dosage forms are as follows.
How many types of equipment are used in tablet coating?
Based on the working principle, there are three types of tablet coating equipment are used in tablet coatings such as the standard coating pan, perforated coating pan, and fluidized bed coater.
What is the difference between tablets and capsules?
The major difference between tablets and capsules is that the tablet contains compressed powder in solid form while the capsule contains powder or jelly which is enclosed in a gelatin shell (hard or soft).
What are the types of granulation?
The granulation technique is generally classified into two types, i.e. dry granulation and wet granulation.
Which are the types of tablet coating are used in pharmaceutical industries?
According to the properties and nature tablets are coated with sugar coating, film coating, enteric coating, gelatin coating, compression coating, magnetically assisted impaction coating, rotary-die coating, electrostatic coating, and dip coating, etc.
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