mucoadhesive polymers

Current innovation in pharmaceuticals determine the merits of mucoadhesive drug delivery system is particularly relevant than oral control release, for getting local systematic drugs distribution in GIT for a prolong period of time at a predetermined rate. The demerits relative with the oral drug delivery system is the extensive presystemic metabolism, degrade in acidic medium as a result insufficient absorption of the drugs. However parental drug delivery system may beat the downside related with oral drug delivery system but parental drug delivery system has significant expense, least patient compliance and supervision is required. By the buccal drug delivery system the medication are directly pass via into systemic circulation, easy administration without pain, brief enzymatic activity, less hepatic metabolism and excessive bioavailability. This review article is an outline of buccal dosage form, mechanism of mucoadhesion, in-vitro and in-vivo mucoadhesion testing technique.

Bioadhesion can be defined as the process by which a natural or a synthetic polymer can adhere to a biological substrate. When the biological substrate is a mucosal layer then the phenomena is known as mucoadhesion. The substrate possessing bioadhesive property can help in devising a delivery system capable of delivering a bioactive agent for a prolonged period of time at a specific delivery site. The current review  provides  a good insight on mucoadhesive polymers, the phenomenon of mucoadhesion and the factors which have the ability to affect the mucoadhesive properties of a polymer. This review also considers the basic mechanisms by which mucoadhesive can adhere to a mucous membrane  in terms of the nature of the adhering surfaces and the forces that may be generated to secure them together. Mucosal adhesion is backed by several theories which include electronic, adsorption, wetting, diffusion, fracture and mechanical. Stages of mucoadhesion include contact stage and consolidation stage.