MULTILAYERED TABLET: A NOVEL APPROACH FOR ORAL DRUG DELIVERY

Multi-layer tablet is a new era for winning development of controlled release formulation along with various features to provide successful drug delivery. Bi-layer tablets can be crucial option to avoid chemical incompatibilities between active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) by physical separation and to facilitate the development of different drug release profiles. Multi-layer tablet is appropriate for chronological release of two drugs in combination and also for sustained release of tablet in which one layer is for immediate release as loading dose and second layer is maintenance dose. So use of bi-layer tablets is a very different aspect for anti-hypertensive, diabetic, anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs where combination therapy is often used. Several pharmaceutical companies are currently developing bi-layer tablets, for a variety of reasons: patent extension, therapeutic, marketing to name a few. General tablet manufacturing principles remain the same, there is much more to consider because making multi-layer tablets involves multiple often incompatible products, additional equipment and many formulation and operation challenges. The present object provides an introduction to bi-layer tablet technology, challenges in multi-layer tablet manufacturing, various tablet presses used, quality and GMP requirements for their production various techniques used for bi-layer tableting and recent developments in the field of bi-layer technology.