Medicated Chewing Gum: A Novel Drug Delivery System

In the recent years scientific and technological advancements have been made in the research and development of oral drug delivery systems. The reasons that the oral route achieved such popularity may be primarily due to its ease of administration. Chewing gum is one of the very popular oral confectionary products. It is a potentially useful means of administering drugs either locally or systematically via, the oral cavity. The medicated chewing gum has through the recent years gained increasing acceptance as a drug delivery system. Chewing gum known as gum base (insoluble gum base resin) contains elastomers, emulsifiers, fillers, waxes, antioxidants, softners, sweeteners, food colorings, flavoring agents, and in case of medical chewing gum, active substances. It offers various advantages over conventional drug delivery systems. Unlike chewable tablets, medicated chewing gums are not supposed to be swallowed and may be removed from the site of application without resorting to invasive means. Moreover medicated chewing gums require the active and continuous masticatory activities for activation and continuation of drug release. An In-vitro apparatus was specially designed and constructed for release testing of medicated chewing gums. Medicated chewing gums are excellent mobile drug delivery systems for self-medication as it is convenient and can be administered discretely without water.