Pharmaceutical applications of spouted beds: A review on solid dosage forms

Spouted beds (SBs) have a long history of successful applications for preparation of solid dosage forms of pharmaceuticals. The well-known versatility of SBs, provided by different design and operational factors, and their efficient mixing of solids allow for engineering of technological characteristics of pharmaceutical solid forms. Particle properties like morphology, size, porosity, flowability, and dissolution rate can be improved by managing geometric and operational conditions for spouting. Drying is probably the most disseminated operation for pharmaceutical processing in SBs, and many studies have investigated drying of medicinal plant extracts such as achiote (Bixa orellana sp.), guarana (Paullinia cupana sp.), passion flower (Passiflora alata D.), and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) with excellent pharmacotechnical and stability results. Another important application is coating of tablets and gelatin capsules, and previous studies have shown that SBs and spout–fluid beds may be advantageous over traditional pan coating, especially for polymeric film coating. Recently, an alternative process for improving drug bioavailability has involved preparation of β-cyclodextrin inclusion complexes in SBs. The first study to propose SBs for this pharmaceutical application explored the advantage of obtaining solid forms of inclusion complexes in just one step, and obtained expressive increases in drug solubility. The technique has been applied in subsequent studies on inclusion complexes of the medication carvedilol and uxi (Endopleura uchi L.) extracts.

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