Novel Oral Sustained Release Technology: a Concise Review

The advantage of administering a single dose of a drug that is released over an extended period of time instead of numerous doses is now a day’s area of interest for formulation scientists in Pharmaceutical industry. There are several advantages of sustained release drug delivery over conventional dosage forms like improved patient compliance due to less frequent drug administration, maximum utilization of the drug, increased safety margin of potent drug, reduction of fluctuation in steady-state drug levels, reduction in healthcare costs through improved therapy and shorter treatment period. Wide varieties of polymers like Hydroxy Propyl Methyl Cellulose (HPMC), Carboxy Methyl Cellulose (CMC), Ethyl Cellulose (EC), Cellulose Acetate Phthalate, HPMC K100M, Xanthan gum, Carrageenan gum, Karaya gum, HPMC K15, Carbopol 971P and Carbopol 974P etc. are available for retarding the release rate of drugs hence sustains the action of drugs. This review article describes the basic information regarding sustained-release formulation, its advantages, disadvantages, selection of drug for sustain release, mechanism of release, different types, and factor involved in oral sustained-release dosage form design.