Volume 9, Issue 2, July – August 2011; Article-009 ISSN 0976 – 044X International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences Review and Research Page 50 Available online at www.globalresearchonline.net Bhupinder Bhyan* 1 , Sarita Jangra 2 , Mandeep Kaur 1 , Harmanpreet Singh 1 1 Lovely School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar-Delhi G.T. Road (NH-1), Phagwara. Punjab, India. 2 Seedling college of Pharmacy, Jaipur National University, Jaipur-302025, Rajasthan, India. Accepted on: 20-04-2011; Finalized on: 25-07-2011. ABSTRACT Orally fast dissolving films (OFDFs) have been introduced in the market recently as they provide convenience and ease of use over other dosage forms such as orally disintegrating tablets. This technology evolved over the past few years from the confection and oral care markets in the form of breath strips and became a novel and widely accepted form by consumers, so OFDFs are gaining the interest of large number of pharmaceutical industries. Orally fast dissolving film is the type of drug delivery system which when placed in the oral cavity, disintegrate or dissolve within few seconds without the intake of water. OFDFs are very similar to postage stamp in their shape, size and thickness. These films have a potential to deliver the drug systemically through intragastric, sublingual or buccal route of administration and also has been used for local action. This type of technology offer a convenient way of dosing medication, not to special population groups like pediatric, geriatric, bedridden patients, mentally ill patients, but also to the general population. The present review provides an account of various formulation considerations, method of preparation and quality control of the OFDFs. Keywords: Fast dissolving films, Fast disintegration, Oral strips, Tensile strength. INTRODUCTION Oral route is the most preferred route for the delivery of the drugs till date as it bears various advantages over the other route of drug administration, but oral drug delivery systems still need some advancements to be made because of their some drawbacks related to particular class of patients which includes geriatric, pediatric and dysphasic patients associated with many medical conditions as they have difficulty in swallowing or chewing solid dosage forms. Many pediatric and geriatric patients are unwilling to take solid preparations due to fear of choking. Even with fast dissolving tablets there is a fear of choking due to its tablet type appearance. One study showed that 26% of 1576 patients experienced difficulty in swallowing tablets. The most common complaint was tablet size, followed by surface form and taste. The problem of swallowing tablets was more evident in geriatric and pediatric patients, as well as travelling patients who may not have ready access to water 1- 4 . So, fast-dissolving drug-delivery systems came into existence in the late 1970’s as an alternative to tablets, capsules and syrups for pediatric and geriatric patients who experience difficulties in swallowing traditional oral solid-dosage forms. These systems consist of the solid dosage forms that disintegrate and dissolve quickly in the oral cavity without the administration of water. Research and development in the oral drug delivery segment has led to transition of dosage forms from simple conventional tablets or capsules to modified release tablets or capsules to oral disintegrating tablet (ODT) to wafer to the recent development of oral fast dissolving films (OFDFs). Amongst the plethora of avenues explored for the rapid drug releasing products, oral strip technology is gaining much attention 5, 6 . Orally fast-dissolving film is new drug delivery system for the oral delivery of the drugs. It was developed on the basis of technology of the transdermal patch. The delivery system consists of a very thin oral strip, which is simply placed on the patient’s tongue or any oral mucosal tissue, instantly wet by saliva the film rapidly hydrates and adheres onto the site of application. It then rapidly disintegrates and dissolves to release the medication for oromucosal and intragastric absorption. Technology Catalysts forecasts the market for drug products in oral thin film formulations was valued of $500 million in 2007 and could reach $2 billion in 2012. Based on upward global growth trends of the past decade, the fast dissolving dosage market could produce revenues of $13 billion by 2015 7, 8 . Special features of mouth dissolving films  Thin elegant film  Available in various size and shapes  Unobstructive  Excellent mucoadhesion  Fast disintegration  Rapid release The ideal characteristics of a drug to be selected  The drug should have pleasant taste.  The drug to be incorporated should have low dose upto 40 mg. ORALLY FAST DISSOLVING FILMS: INNOVATIONS IN FORMULATION AND TECHNOLOGY Review Article