Gelatin has biodegradability, good biocompatibility, and film-forming properties, and is widely used in the pharmaceutical field.
Hard and soft capsules
Gelatin is widely used to make the outer shell of soft and hard capsules. It can effectively protect the contents of the capsules from the influence of light, atmospheric oxygen, pollution, and microbial growth, while masking taste and odor.
The appearance of hard capsules is smooth and beautiful, which can cover the odor of drugs and is convenient to take. Compared with tablets and pills, it has advantages such as fast gastrointestinal disintegration, fast absorption, and good efficacy. Put the drug into capsules, isolate it from light, air, and water, increase the stability of the drug, and release the drug at a fixed time and location.
Soft capsules can mask the odor and bitterness of drugs, making patients willing to take them. Soft capsules have high bioavailability and are different from tablets and pills. They do not require gel or pressure during preparation and can be quickly dispersed and absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Neat and beautiful appearance, easy to swallow, easy to store and carry.
Tablets
Gelatin can be used as an adhesive or coating material for tablets, but its cost is lower than that of hard capsules. In addition, tablets can provide dose separation and there is no risk of cross-linking, which is a characteristic that hard capsules do not possess.
However, hard capsules also have their unique advantages. Firstly, hard capsules are easier to swallow than tablets, especially for patients with oral difficulties such as the elderly and children. Secondly, hard capsules can contain more medicinal ingredients, which can better protect drugs from external environmental influences. Finally, the production efficiency of hard capsules is higher, and the production process is more environmentally friendly and sustainable.
Therefore, when selecting drug dosage forms, multiple factors should be comprehensively considered, including drug ingredients, patient characteristics, production costs, environmental requirements, etc.
Medical equipment
In the field of medical devices, gelatin is widely used to manufacture various medical products,
One of its uses is to make high-strength, low irritation surgical sutures, which can be used for wound suturing during surgery.
Sponge like materials with good hemostatic effects can be prepared for surgical hemostasis, and can also be mixed with other materials to prepare artificial skin for skin repair in burns, wounds, and other situations.
In summary, gelatin, as a natural biomaterial, has a wide range of applications in the fields of pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
