Capsules And Tablets Flashcards
What happens when a patient is unable to swallow an intact solid dosage form?
Chewable tablets, instant dissolving tablets, oral liquids, or suppositories are made available by changing the excipients
What are some benefits of solid dosage forms?
Medication is protected
Easier storage and transport
Promote better patient compliance (tasteless, easy to dose, capsules of certain design provide modified release)
Can capsules be filled with liquids ?
No, capsules containing liquids must be sealed (requires industrial conditions)
The liquid may be mixed with inert absorbent. Resultant solid mixture may be placed in capsules
What are capsules made from?
Stable in air, biocompatible, soluble in gi tract material
Gelatin
How is a capsule filled?
Put the empty capsule on a balance and on the other side put an empty capsule with a weight equal to what you want in the capsule, Fill the empty capsule that is by itself on the balance until the balance is level
How are enteric coated tablets administered?
They are designed to pass through the stomach for drug release and absorption in the intestine
What are extended release capsule dosage forms designed for?
They are designed to provide release of the medication.
Different dosage forms help you stay above the mec and below the mtc
In the stomach, what objects float on gastric contents? Which sink to the base of greater curvature?
Light objects float in gastric contents
Heavy objects flow to the base of greater curvature (non disintegrating)
If you take an NSAID on an empty stomach what happens?
It looks like an ulcer in your stomach
What effects gastric emptying?
Posture, time of day, pregnancy decreases it, menstrual cycle decreases it, heavy exercise increases, high fat / high caloric diets slow gastric emptying
How does gastric emptying relate to food intake?
Gastric emptying is influenced by continual intake of food.
On an empty stomach gastric emptying is very fast, it is the slowest after breakfast + snack + lunch + snack + supper at 2.5 hour intervals
When dosed before, with or after a meal , in which case is the gastric emptying slowest?
When dosed with a meal
How does time of day effect the rate of gastric emptying?
After an 8 pm meal there are more solids remaining
In the stomach after 90 minutes than if you take the drug at 8 am
What is a capsule?
A solid dosage form in which medicinal agents and/or inert substances are enclosed within a small shell of gelatin
Hard gelatin capsules are used to manufacture most of the commercially available medicated capsules. What are empty capsule shells made from?**
- Gelatin, sugar and water
- They are clear, colorless, and essentially tasteless
- most contain color ants and opaque ta to make them distinctive
What are the two parts of a hard gelatin capsule?
The base (or body) which is longer and has a see diameter
The cap is designated to slide over the base portion And form a snug seal
Can the contents of hard gelatin capsules be opened and administered in food or liquids?
Only with the concurrence of the pharmacist (not all can be, gelatin is intended to be swallowed whole)
Gelatin is soluble to what?
Hot water and warm gastric fluids
Where is gelatin digested? What happens when gelatin is dissolved?
Gelatin is a protein, therefore digested by proteolytic enzymes and absorbed when dissolved gelatin exposes its medicinal contents to the gastric (or intestinal) bodily fluids
Where is the gelatin derived from to make capsules?*
It is obtained from the partial hydrolysis of collagen obtained from ski , white connective tissue and bones Of animals
What happens to gelatin when moist?
Gelatin is stable in air but subject to microbial decomposition when moist
What is the moisture level in hard capsules?
13-16% moisture - poor storage can increase this level -> bad!
- how is moisture avoided in gelatin capsules?
Desiccant materials: dried silica, gel, clay, and activated carbon
Used to protect against absorption of atmospheric moisture
Which dosage forms are preferred? Why?
Tablets and capsules are preferred over liquids and many other dosage forms because they are conveniently carried and readily identified
What are advantages of capsules and tablets over other dosage forms?
They are tasteless when swallowed, and are now scored, or grooved, allowing them to be broken easily into more manageable parts, reduced or divided allowing patients to swallow portions.
What are capsules?
A solid dosage form I. Which medicinal agents and/or inert substances are enclosed within a small she’ll of gelatin
How many hard gelatin capsule sizes are there?
8
Which is the smallest capsule size? 000, 00, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Largest?
Smallest: 5
Largest: 000
What is the goal of developing the formulation for a capsule?*
Prepare a capsule with accurate dosage, good bioavailability, ease of filling, and production, stability, and elegance
Is care in blending the capsule formulation more important in low or high dose drugs?
Low dose drugs - lack of homogeneity could result n significant therapeutic consequences
Why are diluents or fillers used when developing a capsule formulation?
they are often used to produce the proper capsule fill volume, they also offer bulk and cohesion
examples: lactose, microcrystalline cellulose and starch
What is the method pharmacists use to fill hard capsule shells?
The “punch” method
( start w/ exact # of capsules to be filled, powder to be encapsulated on clean sheet of paper, clean glass, or clean porcelain plate, using a spatula powder is formed into a cake, empty capsule body is held between the thumb and forefinger and “puncheD” vertically into the powder cake repeatedly until filled)
What are the three ways capsules can be sealed?
- with a colored band of gelatin (KAPSEALS, Parke-Davis)
- through a heat welding process that fuses the capsule cap to the body
industrial capsule sealing machines: can produce 60,000 to 150,000 gelatin banded, heat welded or thermally coupled capsules per hour
What is the method of cleaning and polishing capsules on a small scale?
Large scale?
Small scale: wipe with clean gauze or cloth
Large scale cleaning: a vacuum can remove extraeous materials
What are soft gelatin capsules?
pharmaceutically elegant an easily swallowed
- liquids that can easily migrate through the capsule shell cannot be encapsulated into soft gelatin capsules
When shouldn’t soft gelatin capsules be used?
- when water content is around 5%
- when low molecular weight water soluble and organic compounds such as: alcohols, ketones, amines, and esters
What are the 4 compendial requirements for things added to capsule preparations to facilitate their manufacture:
They can only be used if:
- harmless (in the quantities used)
- do not exceed the minimum amounts require to provide their intended effect ( have to make room for other components and don’t want to add anything extra)
- do not impair the products bioavailability
do not interfere with assays to evaluate dosage form
What is important about capsules within capsules?
- The inside capsule should not be visible through the large capsule
- The active ingredients can be separated from other ingredients in a formulation
- a small capsule can be filled with one powder, and then place that capsule along with remaining ingredients inside a larger capsule
What is significant about a tablet inside a capsule?
- small commercially available tablets can be placed inside a capsule of a suitable size
- small quantity of the additional powder should be deposited in the base before and after adding the tablet
- similar to capsule inside a capsule, tablet shouldn’t be visible through filled capsule
How are tablets primarily made/
By compression with a limited number by molding
Why would tablets be grooved?
they can be broken into two parts which offers flexibility (swallowed whole or divided doses)
Compressed tablets
Usually contain the following in addition to medicinal agents:
diluents or fillers: add bulk to prepare a certain size
binder or adhesives: promote particle adhesion
disintegrants: promote breakup of tablets/drug availability
antiadherents/glidants/lubricating agents
miscellaneous adjuncts: colorants and flavorants to enhance appearance
Multiple compressed tablets (M.C.T)
- more than a single compression
- produces multiple- layers tablet or a tablet within a tablet
- each layer may contain a different medicinal agent
Why is important that each layer in an M.C.T. can contain a different medicinal agent?
- separation may be required to avoid and prevent chemical and physical incompatibility
- staged drug release
- general appearance of multiple layered tablet
Sugar Coated tablets (S.C.T.)
- compressed tablets can be covered with a colored or uncolored sugar layer that is:
- water soluble, quickly dissolved after swallowing, protects enclosed drug form the environment, enhances the general appearance of tablets and permits imprinting of identifying manufacturer’s info
- may be 50% larger and heavier than uncoated tablets
Film coated tablets (F.C.T.)
- coated with a thin layer of a polymer capable of forming a skin-like film over the tablet
usually colored, more durable, less bulky, and less time consuming to apply than sugar coatings, designed to rupture and expose the core tablet at the desired location in the G.I. tract
Gelatin - coated tablets (gelcap)
- capsule shaped compressed tablet
facilitates swallowing and more tamper evident than unsealed capsules
Enteric coated tablets (E.T.C)
- delayed release characteristics
- designed to pass stomach unchanged to intestine where the tablets disintegrate and allow drug dissolution
- mainly used when bypassing the stomach to improve drug absorption
Buccal and Sublingual
flat, oval tablets intended to be dissolved in the buccl pouch or under the tongue through absorption through oral mucosa
- an alternative for drugs that are poorly absorbed from the G.I. tract
True or false: buccal tablets are designed to provide rapid release?
False, buccal tablets are designed to erode slowly
sublingual tablets are designed to provide rapid release
How large is the area of absorption for buccal drug delivery?
smaller compared to other routes - 100 to 170 cm2
How should buccal drugs be delivered?
must taste bland
must be a non-irritant
should not discolor or erode teeth
Linings of the epithelium are keratinized for buccal and sublingual, but the epithelium for sublingual is thinner. what does this tell us about drug absorption?
Drug absorption is faster sublingually because the epithelium is thinner
Chewable tablets have a creamy base usually of specially flavored and colored what?
mannitol
Chewable tablets disintegrate blank when chewed or allowed to dissolve in the mouth
rapidly
Who are chewable tablets ideal for?
children and adults who have difficulty swallowing solid dosage forms
Molded tablets (M.T.)
- tablet triturates may be prepare by molding (not compressed)
- in terms of appearance very soft and soluble
- designed for rapid dissolution
Vaginal tablets, also called vaginal inserts are uncoated and bullet, or ovoid shaped tablets which are inserted in the vagina for LOCALIZED effects, what can they be used to treat?
antibacterials for the treatment of vaginitis caused by hemophilus vaginalis or
antifungal for treatment of vulvo vaginitis candidiasis caused by candida albicans and related species
Which of the following is used to improve flow properties of powder mixtures?
a. colloidal silica
b. magnesium stearate
c. white wax
d. a and b only
e. a, b, and c
A
Which is NOT a characteristic of the gelatin used to manufacture capsules?
a. will melt in cold water
b. will pass through the gastric fluids unchanged
c. is not digested in the body or absorbed
d. a and b only
e. a, b and c
E
