Chapter 16 - Compounding II: Equipment, Stability & Excipients Flashcards
What are some graduated measuring equipments?
- Graduated cylinders
- Conical (cone- shaped) graduates
- Graduated beakers
- Graduated medication containers
What is IV push?
Providing a quick bolus dose into a vein (directly) or into a vein through a catheter
What can you do to avoid fatal medication errors in ORAL and IV syringes?
To avoid fatal medication errors, safety measures include:
- Placing a “For Oral Use Only” sticker over the syringe cap
- Using a syringe design that prevents connection to an IV port
- Using oral syringes with brightly colored plungers/caps that differentiate them from IV syringes
- Clearly communicating the correct route of administration to the nurse
- Are syringes most accurate to measure large or small volumes?
- For what type of liquids are syringes useful?
- Is it more accurate to measure in a measuring cup or oral syringe?
- Small
- Viscous
- Oral syringe
Oral syringes can be used to deliver small amounts of topical preparations.
When and with what should all hypodermal syringes be wiped off
All syringe packages should be wiped off with isopropyl alcohol (IPA) 70% to remove contaminants and dust, prior to being brought into the secondary engineering control (SEC) or into the primary engineering control (PEC) if working in a segregated compounding area.
Can u not recap a syringe after u use it?
in general, yes dont recap
if u have to, put in on the work surface
or use syringes with safety features
If the pipette is being inserted into an opening such as a mouth or nose, it is important to …
keep the bulb squeezed after the dose is delivered and when withdrawing it, to avoid contaminating the inside of the pipette.
What are the different types of pipettes?
- A volumetric pipette draws up a set volume only, which is the volume the pipette can hold.
- A Mohr pipette is graduated and is used to measure different volumes. Mohr pipettes are commonly used in compounding.
How much does the drop weigh in medicine droppers?
Medicine Droppers
- Come in graduated and non-graduated versions.
- Graduated droppers that meet USP criteria release drops of water that weigh 45 - 55 mg, when held vertically.
Graduated dropper
■ The weight is given for water drops; other compounds will have different weights for the same size drops, depending on the liquid’s specific gravity.
■ Non-graduated medicine droppers that meet the USP criteria release a similarly-sized drop.
YE OLD TORSION BALANCE
- Other names?
- Used to weigh what quantities?
- External weights should be handled with what?
- What is the MWQ?
- What is the Sensitivity requirement?
- What is the accepted error rate?
- Class Ill (ClassA) torsion balances have internal weights, which are used to weigh quantities <= 1 gram.
- When weighing > 1 gram, external weights are placed on one pan and the substance to be weighed is placed on the other.
- The external weights must be handled with a forceps (pincers) to avoid getting oil from the skin on the weights.
- Torsion balances have a sensitivity requirement (SR) that is most often 6 mg, meaning 6 mg can be added or removed before the dial moves 1 division.
- The minimum weighable quantity (the minimum amount that can be weighed) is calculated based on the SR and acceptable error rate (typically 0.05 or 5%):
MWQ = SR/ acceptable error rate (0.05 or 5%) - This type of balance is still used, though less commonly than the electronic balance
What type of balance is most commonly used?
The top-loading electronic balance (analytical balance/ scale) is used most commonly.
- Has a higher sensitivity
- has more precision, including small amounts
- You dont have to calculate the MWQ
What are the 3 types of mortar and pestle that a pharmacy needs?
And what is each one’s purpose?
A compounding pharmacy needs at least one glass and one Wedgwood or porcelain mortar and pestle.
■ Glass mortars are used for liquids, such as suspensions and solutions, and for mixing compounds that are oily or can stain.
■ Wedgwood mortars have a rough surface, and are preferred for grinding dry crystals and hard powders.
■ Porcelain mortars have a smooth surface, and are preferred for blending powders and pulverizing gummy consistencies.
- Why do u use spatulas?
- What are spatulas made of?
- Which ones are commonly used?
- When do u use each?
- Mix and transfer (move) ingredients
- Flat part of the blade: flattens and grinds down ingredients, and packs preparations such as ointments into containers.
- Made of:
- Stainless steel
- Plastic
- Hard rubber.
- Commonly used: Stainless steel and disposable plastic spatulas
■ Steel (metal) spatula would not be used if making a mixture that contains metallic ions.
■ Rubber spatula: corrosive material.
What does an Ointment Mill do?
- Draws the ointment (or another semi-solid preparation) between rollers that grind and
- Homogenize (i.e., make non-gritty, smooth and uniform) the ingredients in the preparation.
What are Homogenizers?
What are they also called?
What are some popular brands?
- Used to mix ointments, creams or other semi-solid preparations.
- Also called an electric mortar and pestle
- Similar to a smoothie blender
- Homogenizers can be small and hand- held.
- A popular brand of homogenizer is called the Unguator.
■ There are other homogenizer manufacturers that make various models (e.g., PharmaRAM or Mazerustar Mixer).
What is an Electrical Grinder?
- Electric grinders are similar to coffee bean grinders. In fact, coffee bean grinders are used in some pharmacies. When used for compounding, they must be dedicated for compounding use only (i.e., not for coffee bean grinding).
- A grinder is useful for grinding hard tablets down.
- The powder will need further preparation to produce a fine powder.
What is a Hot Plate with Magnetic Stirrer?
- A hot plate with a magnetic stirrer can save time by continuously stirring the mixture to dissolve and mix the ingredients.
■ The stirrer has a rotating magnet under the ceramic plate, which causes the stir bar (placed inside the glass) to spin and stir the components.
■ Hot plates are used without the stir bar to heat only (a glass stirring rod can be used to mix contents manually).
Heating devices:
hot plates
microwave
What can u use to form a tablet?
tablet press (or tablet mold) is two plastic or metal plates used to compress damp powder into tablets.
- What are the 2 types of capsules?
- From what are the shells made of?
- What is the range for capsule size?
- Capsules can be soft gels or hard shells, which are more commonly used for compounding.
The shells are made of:
- Gelatin: which is pork-derived and will not be suitable for some patients,
or
- Hypromellose or a similar plant- derived product. (Is a cellulose product)
■ Capsule sizes for human use range from 000 (the largest size) to 5 (the smallest size). Veterinary pharmacists can order larger capsule sizes for use in large animals.
■ Capsule bodies are filled with the drugs and excipients, and the capsule caps are placed over the bodies by hand or with a capsule machine.
High quality ingredients for compounding will be listed in:
Where should they be manufactured?
Ingredients that are recommended for use will be listed in either:
■ The USP National Formulary (USP-NF)
■ The Food Chemicals Codex (FCC) substances list
- Should be manufactured at an FDA- registered facility.
- If any substance comes from a non-FDA registered facility, a Certificate of Analysis (CoA) should be obtained that confirms the specifications and quality.
- Why are Expiration dates important?
- What can u do if there’s an ingredient without an expiration date? And how should u label it?
Ingredients degrade, and expiration dates are important to ensure that the product retains potency and is non-toxic.
- If there is an ingredient without an expiration date, the pharmacist will assign a conservative (cautious) date that is no more than 3 years from the date of receipt (the day the pharmacy received the item).
- The label on the container should include:
■ The date of receipt
■ The assigned expiration date
Why do we add a surfactant?
What is their MOA?
Are surfactants lipo or hydrophilic?
What is their non-micelle mechanism?
- Surfactant = surface active agent
- Surfactants lower the surface tension (i.e., the interfacial tension) between two ingredients (or phases) in a preparation to make them more miscible (i.e., easier to mix together).
- The surfactant lowers the interfacial tension, to help the phases move closer together.
- The common mechanism of action of a surfactant involves forming a micelle structure, which can reverse (turn inside-out).
- If oil and water are mixed, the oil will interact with the lipophilic (lipid- loving) end of the surfactant, and the water will interact with the hydrophilic (water-loving} end of the surfactant.
- Surfactants are amphiphilic; they are both hydrophilic (on one side) and hydrophobic (on the other side).
- Non-Micelle Mechanisms
- Surfactants do not always form micelles; some form a film between the surfaces, or form an electrically-charged layer to keep the phases separate.
- With all mechanisms, the surface tension is lowered, which helps with drug preparation and stabilization.
