Trend in Fast Dissolving Tablets: An Overview

Drug delivery systems are becoming increasingly sophisticated as pharmaceutical scientists acquire a better understanding of the physicochemical and biochemical parameters pertinent to their performance. Over the past three decades, Fast Dissolving Tablets (FDTs) have gained much attention as a preferred alternative to conventional oral dosage form such as tablet and capsules. FDTs are solid unit dosage forms containing medicinal substances which disintegrate or dissolve rapidly usually in a matter of seconds, when they come in contact with saliva, thus obviating the requirement of water during administration. Therefore, these dosage forms have lured the market for a certain section of the patient population which includes dysphagic, bed ridden, psychic, geriatric and paediatric patients. This has encouraged both academia and industry to generate new orally disintegrating formulations and technological approaches in this field. This article focuses on the various formulation aspects, disintegrates employed and technologies developed for FDTs, along with various excipients, evaluation tests, marketed formulations, future prospects and drugs explored in this field.