Although multiparticulates, which comprise minitablets, pellets, and granules, have been taken by patients in one dosage form or another for quite some time, it is only in the last two decades that the full potential of multiparticulates as drug delivery systems has been realized in terms of both flexibility during formulation development and therapeutic benefits to patients. Not only can multiparticulates be divided into desired doses without formulation and process changes, but they can also be blended to deliver simultaneously incompatible bioactive agents, or particles with different release profiles at the same site or at different sites within the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, technological advances in dosage form design, the advent of highly specialized pieces of equipment, and the popularity of controlled-release dosage forms as a means of drug delivery have made multiparticulates a viable and attractive alternative to single-unit dosage forms.
This definitive reference explores the various aspects of multiparticulate dosage form development-assessing the in vivo behavior and performance of multiparticulates as well as comparing their market position to other dosage forms.