SOLID DOSAGE FORM PILL

Pills are oral unit dosage form which are small spherical or ovoid masses which are required to be made at the dispensing counter. These are rarely prepared extemporaneously nowadays. No formulae for pills are given in the latest edition of Indian Pharmacopoeia. A good pill have following requirements:

• it should readily disintegrate in intestinal tract
• should be uniform in weight in order to ensure accurate dosage
• medicament should be thoroughly and evenly distributed throughout the pill mass in order to ensure accurate dosage
• Pills should be round or oval in order to facilitate swallowing. Pills should not be too small or large for convenience in handling and swallowing
• Pills should be coated to mask taste and to improve elegance.

FORMULATION: Pills are made from pill masses which contain three classes of substances; 1. active ingredients 2. A diluent and 3. Excipients

commonly used Excipients are Binding agents, absorbing agents and fluid or semi solid

Binding agent: Is used to bind the particles to assist adhesion Ex: acacia, tragacanth, compound powder of acacia, syrup of liquid glucose, beeswax, lanolin and wool fat

Absorbing agent: This is necessary in pills containing oily ingredients ex: kaolin, liquorice root powder, curd soap and hard soap.

Fluid or semi solid: This is required to render the pill mass plastic ex. syrup of liquid glucose