Application Studies / Vaginal Contraceptive Film Disintegration

Vaginal Contraceptive Film Disintegration

Industry:

Pharmaceutical

Attributes measured:

hardness

firmness

disintegration

swelling

Background

Vaginal contraceptive films are quick disintegrating strips that contain and deliver spermicide gel. Vaginal contraceptive films need to survive storage in their packaging and then be flexible enough to be removed and placed in the vagina where they disintegrate and deliver the spermicide. If contraceptive films disintegrate too quickly after opening the package and during handling, then proper placement might not be achieved and the effectiveness of the product could be impacted. Conversely, an adequate handling time must be balanced against an efficient deployment speed along with a timely disintegration of the film into an effective contraceptive gel. This study uses the Stable Micro Systems’ TA.XTPlus Texture Analyzer and Exponent software to determine the disintegration behavior of vaginal contraceptive films.