A healthy tablet is strong and firm. They can absorb the mechanical shocks of manufacturing, packing, shipping, dispensing, and usage. When introduced to the body, a table should produce an active effect. Tablets are uniform in weight and drug composition. Also, the tablets should be stable- physically and chemically to maintain their physical and chemical balance throughout.
Pros and Cons
The tablets are fairly easy to monitor, and dispensed. There is no room for dosage-variability. Bitter and nauseous substances are skillfully coated to give it a tablet form.
Unlike liquid dosage forms, they are light-weight and doesn’t incur hefty transport bills. They have easily manufactured bearing product identification and specifications like color coatings, markings, and printing. Known for their stability of dosage forms, tablets are economical, durable, easy to use, and convenient to carry anywhere.
Every coin has two sides, and so does tablets. Some drugs are hard to compress in tablet form due to their low-density nature. They would require a different kind of dosage form. Also, odorous, bitter drugs or drugs sensitive to oxygen and moisture would need special kind of protective coating to avoid chemical decay and prolong the shelf-life. Hence the cost of specialized coating spikes up the price of a strip of tablets. Some drugs cannot be converted into tablets as they have inherent slow dissolution properties embedded in them.
In a nutshell
Undoubtedly, tablets remain the most-preferred drug dosage form owing to its string of benefits to both the pharmaceutical companies and patients. They have been ruling the dosage form world since its inception. The basic science behind preparing a pill hasn’t changed much. It is now backed with more research and efforts to understand the physical attributes of the powder, availability of the drug and its administration