Medication – Why are some injectable, while others are a tablet, capsule or suppository? In this article, we discuss the reasons for different medication formulations.
The medication formulation process involves combining the active drug molecules with other ingredients to produce the final medicinal product. The process includes selecting appropriate ingredients that aid in drug delivery, enhance stability, and improve patient compliance. This process ensures that the medication is safe, effective, and acceptable for patient use.
Common types of administration formulations are:
- Oral formulations:
- Tablets: Compressed powder in a disc shape, often coated to aid in swallowing and disintegration in the digestive tract.
- Capsules: Gelatin shells filled with powder or liquid medication. Both types have different compositions in the way it is released.
- Oral liquids: Also known as syrups or suspensions. The active ingredient is mostly suspended in the liquid or solutions when the ingredient is dissolved in the mixture.
- Parenteral Formulations:
- Generally called injections. Administered directly into the bloodstream, muscle, or under the skin. Some is given directly in seconds, while others are administered slowly over time as an infusion.
- Inhalation preparations, which include nasal sprays, asthma pumps and nebulisers.
- Topical preparations are applied to your skin as ointment, gel, cream, spray or via a patch.
Why all these different types of formulations?
- Different types of formulations are developed to optimise the delivery and efficacy of the active pharmaceutical ingredient.
- Different ways to use medication are required to ensure the drug reaches the intended site of action effectively.
- Medications are designed to be convenient and acceptable for patients to use, so that you can keep to your medication regimen.
- Formulations must ensure the drug remains stable while in the container and is absorbed efficiently by the body.
- The formulation is also formulated according to how quickly the medication must work or how long it must keep working.
Thus, medication formulations are a critical aspect of pharmaceutical development, ensuring that medications are safe and effective for the needs of patients. We then choose the best and safest preparation of the medication you need.