3 Ways That Hot Melt Extrusion Is Used In The Pharmaceutical Industry

6 June 2015 by Brent Woods

Hot melt extrusion, which is typically associated with the manufacturing of plastics, is getting a lot of attention in the medical industry nowadays. In recent years, pharmaceutical companies have started to implement hot melt extrusion into the manufacturing of medication as well. These are a few reasons why this method has become such a success in this industry.

1. Controlling How Medication is Released

As you probably already know, different medications need to be released in different ways. For example, some medications are best released all throughout the day rather than at once. Some are better released 30 minutes or an hour after being taken. This can be complicated for pharmaceutical makers to do, but hot melt extrusion makes it possible for medication to be released at various speeds and times.

2. Making Active Drugs Taste Better

Many people who take active drugs complain about the bitter taste that they can have. Drug makers have struggled to be able to mask the taste of these drugs without affecting their composition or effectiveness, but hot melt extrusion makes it possible for pharmaceutical companies to do so now.

3. Improving Dissolution Rate

Medications need to be able to dissolve once they are inside the body. Few people want to chew up a pill that has a bitter taste and a strange texture, and doing so can affect the way that the drug is ingested into the bloodstream in many cases as well. Therefore, drug makers have to ensure that drugs will dissolve properly in the system but that they will do so relatively quickly to improve the effectiveness of the drug.

For years, many drug makers have struggled with improving the dissolution rate of medication, but this hasn't always been easy. Luckily, hot melt extrusion has helped a lot to improve this, which makes it possible for drugs to enter the system as they are supposed to, at an improved rate.

If you have ever heard of hot melt extrusion, you have probably heard of it being used in the manufacturing process for plastic products. However, you should know that this isn't the only popular use of hot melt extrusion. Hot melt extrusion is actually becoming increasingly popular in the process of making drugs, which can be beneficial for everyone in the healthcare industry and everyone who takes prescription medication. With the use of this technology, pharmaceuticals are being improved in many ways.

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