Types of Suppositories Quiz

Suppositories

• Suppositories are semi-solid dosage forms designed for insertion into body cavities (rectum, vagina, nose, ear).
• They are not used for the oral route.
• Suppositories are semi-solid preparations made by melting ingredients.
• All suppository types melt at normal body temperature.

Types of Suppositories

• Rectal suppositories: Intended for rectal insertion.
• Vaginal suppositories (pessaries): Larger than rectal suppositories, used for vaginal infections.
• Urethral suppositories (bougies): Used for insertion into the urethra, generally pencil-shaped.
• Nasal suppositories: Inserted into nasal cavities, cylindrical shaped.
• Ear cones: Inserted into the ear.

Advantages of Suppositories

• Useful for unconscious patients.
• Compact dosage form.
• Lower chance of side effects.
• Suitable for patients with nausea or vomiting.
• Suitable for children and older adults who can't swallow.
• Useful to treat rectal and vaginal infections.

Disadvantages of Suppositories

• Patient acceptance issues.
• Not suitable for diarrhea patients.
• Certain drugs can't be made into suppository form.
• Incomplete absorption is possible.
• Need storage at low temperatures to prevent melting.

Suppository Bases

• Suppository bases are excipients used in suppository manufacturing.
• Important role in medicament release.
• Bases must dissolve in the body cavity to release medication.

Properties of Ideal Suppository Bases

• Melt at body temperature.
• Inert and non-irritating.
• Physically and chemically stable.
• Good appearance.
• Compatible with medicaments.
• Stable above melting point.
• Release medication readily.

Types of Suppository Bases

• Oily/Fatty bases (e.g., theobroma oil, emulsified theobroma oil, hydrogenated oils).
• Water-soluble bases (e.g., glycerol-gelatin, polyethylene glycols).
• Emulsifying bases (e.g., witepsol, massa estarinum, massupol).

Methods of Preparation

• Hand rolling method: Simplest, oldest method for small numbers of suppositories.
• Compression molding method (cold compression): Suitable for large-scale production.
• Fusion method (hot process): Melting base with ingredients.

Evaluation Tests for Suppositories

• Appearance test: Uniformity in size and shape.
• Physical strength test: Resistance to breakage.
• Dissolution rate test: Quantity of drug dissolved over time.
• Melting range test: Melting point range.
• Softening test: Time taken for suppository to soften completely.
• Uniformity of drug content test: Consistency of drug concentration.
• Displacement value: Determines quantity of drug displacing a base part.

Pharmaceutical Incompatibilities

• Occur when mixing ingredients changes the drug's physical, chemical, or therapeutic properties.
• Can be intentional or unintentional.
• Incompatible drug mixes can affect product safety, efficacy, appearance, and intended purpose.
• Incompatibilities can happen during compounding, manufacturing, packaging, dispensing, storage or administration.

Types of Incompatibilities

• Physical incompatibility: Change in physical properties (color, taste, viscosity).
  • Examples: Immiscibility, insolubility, precipitation, liquefaction.
• Chemical incompatibility: Change due to chemical reactions (formation of toxic/inactive compounds).
  • Examples: Oxidation-reduction, acid-base hydrolysis, combination reactions, pH changes.
• Therapeutic incompatibility: Unexpected or undesirable effects from mixing (e.g., overdose, incorrect dosage form, drug interactions).

Mechanism of Drug Permeation

• Drugs penetrate the skin (dermis/epidermis, stratum corneum) via transcellular, intercellular or appendageal pathways.


Factors Influencing Dermal Penetration

• Biological factors: Skin condition (hydration, age, blood flow, regional skin, metabolic rate, species difference) affect drug penetration.
• Physiochemical factors: Affects drug characteristics (drug concentration, solubility, diffusion coefficient, molecular size, temperature, pH) impact drug absorption.