Effectiveness of pharmaceuticals largely depends on the quality of their packaging. This is the reason why pharmaceutical companies are extra cautious while choosing material for packaging drug products. However, this is not an easy job as there are several types of material available but not all of them are suitable for every drug item. Some need plastic material, some need metal, some need glass, and so on. One has to have knowledge and must be aware of the requirements of drug product. Any pharmaceutical packaging material to be chosen must meet following requirements:
Primary requirement of any material is to retain physical properties of entire doses forms and provide protection from any sort of damage and breakage incident. Means, they should not deform due to rough handling while transporting to long distances. Also, it should not alter the identity of the product, because often people recognize medicine with their packaging style, material and printing, rather than their name. Preserving the characteristics of the content to comply specifications is another major demand which cannot be neglect. External elements like moisture, light, heat and air may damage product’s functionality, which can be prevented by providing sufficient barrier. So, over all chosen material for pharmaceutical packaging must shield content from biological or physical entities, undesirable or adulterating chemicals.
Many packaging companies perform laboratory tests to determine the suitability of chosen material with the drug product. This takes time and money, but is worthwhile when one is assured that the material is perfect to use.