ABSTRACT
Introduction Before looking at present and future developments in the packaging of pharmaceuticals, some historical background in terms of products and packs may prove useful. Although certain product forms have existed for centuries, to some it may be difficult to envisage even 50 years ago when the majority of OTC and dispensed products were liquids, usually of a none too pleasant taste, and presented in glass bottles closed with corks. Today solid dosages are the major product form, coupled to a more scientific approach to medication where consideration is given to compliance, bioavailability, dissolution, disintegration, bioburden, mode of delivery, impurities from process residues and degradation, purity, etc. Having been brought up initially on the BP 1932, where purities of 90-100% seemed quite acceptable, it is amazing that one failed 50 years ago to ask the obvious question: what is this other, up to 10% ? Today, although we place no less emphasis on purity, we concentrate on identifying the impurities or degradation products to establish that they are both acceptable and safe. In parallel with this change in attitude towards products, there have been significant changes in pharmaceutical packaging. Now there is a highly intense form of investigation where marketing, medical and technical knowledge are brought together to establish the best pack. This 'best pack' is inevitably a compromise of many factors, i.e. how does one balance the need for child-resistance, tamper-resistance, etc. with an increasingly elderly population who survive by their regular medication?
