Fast-disintegrating sublingual epinephrine tablets: effect of tablet dimensions on tablet characteristics.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of changing dimensions on the hardness (H), disintegration time (DT), and wetting time (WT) of fast-disintegrating epinephrine tablets for sublingual administration as potential first aid treatment for anaphylaxis. Tablet formulations I and II, containing 0% and 10% epinephrine bitartrate, respectively, and weighing 150 mg were prepared by direct compression. Formulations were compressed at a range of forces using an 8/32\u27\u27 die with concave punches (CP); a 10/32\u27\u27 and an 11/32\u27\u27 die with CP and flat punches (FP). Tablet weight variation, content uniformity, thickness, H, DT, and WT were measured. The 8/32\u27\u27, 10/32\u27\u27, and 11/32\u27\u27 dies resulted in tablet thickness of ranges 0.25-0.19\u27\u27, 0.17-0.1\u27\u27, and 0.16-0.08\u27\u27, respectively. The DT and WT using the 8/32\u27\u27 die wer