SUSTAINED RELEASE TECHNOLOGY- A REVIEW

Oral drug delivery represents one of the frontier areas of controlled drug delivery systems. In the latest scenario, sustained drug delivery systems have taken over conventional immediate release drug delivery systems due to its various features. These dosage forms are designed to release the drug at a predetermined rate in order to maintain a constant drug concentration for a specific period of time with minimum side effects. Sustained release systems are considered a wiser approach for the drugs with short half-lives and which require repeated dosing, they are easy to formulate and are irrespective of the absorption process form gastrointestinal tract after oral administration. These systems are providing a promising way to minimise the side effects of the drug by preventing the fluctuation of the therapeutic concentration of the drug in the body. The present article lays emphasis on the advantages, disadvantages, drug candidate requirements, terminologies, design, factors affecting and evaluation of oral sustained release formulations.