engleski

Radiation sterilization of pharmaceuticals

This overview of recent literature on radiation sterilization of pharmaceuticals is focused on articles published between 1990 and 2005. More than 350 papers dealing with the subject appeared in the open literature during that period, indicating a renewed interest in the technique after two decades of dwindling interest. About 10% of them are review articles which were mainly consulted for this presentation. Radiation induced degradation of various individual pharmaceuticals, being an unwanted but an inescapable side effect of the process, commands better understanding of the underlying mechanisms and continues to capture the attention of researchers. However, in the period under consideration radiation sterilization has also been applied to some novel concepts and products in pharmaceutical practice ; controlled drug release (CDR) and controlled drug delivery (CDD) systems must be sterile, and radiation sterilization has been considered a viable option to that end. Radiation sterilization of hydrogels, which are primarily used as wound dressings, offers an additional advantage of simultaneous sterilization and polymerization as a single step. The reports on these novel applications refer mainly to the stability of unloaded carrier systems themselves, and to in vitro and animal studies. Much work is needed before clinical applications, and radiation sterilization will certainly play an important role in assuring the sterility of preparations in the future.

overview ; pharmaceuticals ; radiation sterilization

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