Orally disintegrating tablets : Products, technologies, and development issues

Over the past three decades, orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs) have gained much attention as a preferred alternative to conventional oral dosage forms such as tablets and capsules. ODTs release drug in the mouth for absorption through local oromucosal tissues and through pregastric, gastric, and postgastric segments of the gastrointestinal tract. The administration of ODTs may not inherently result in a faster therapeutic onset, but it can circumvent problems such as difficulty in swallowing traditional solid oral dosage forms, particularly by pediatric and geriatric patients. The OraSolv compressed tablet is an ODT manufacturing technology based on a conventional tableting process. The tablet quickly disintegrates because effervescent carbon dioxide is produced upon contact with moisture. ODTs have better patient acceptance and compliance and may offer improved biopharmaceutical properties, improved efficacy, and better safety compared with conventional oral dosage forms. The future potential for ODTs is promising because of the availability of new technologies combined with strong market acceptance and patient demand.