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Administering
HRT with
How is HRT administered There are various ways of administering
HRT. Some of them include: oral, parenteral, rectal, vaginal, topical and
transdermal (through the skin). These treatments can also be classified
as oral, percutaneous and transdermal.
What are transdermal drug delivery systems Transdermal (through the skin) drug delivery system is one way of administering HRT. Other methods of administering HRT include oral, parenteral, rectal, vaginal and topical. Transdermal applicators are the patches containing the drug. They are flat, smooth, discrete and can be used for long term medication. Transdermal delivery systems are not just an alternative route of administration but they improve the therapeutic value of a drug and provide many other advantages including increasing compliance. Transdermal therapy could be of two
types: (a) Reservoir type: Those that control the rate of drug delivery
to skin; and (b) Matrix type: Those that allow the skin to control rate
of drug absorption.
Why is skin the site for transdermal drug delivery Skin is one of the most readily accessible organs of the human body. It has a thickness of only a few mm. Skin is a multi-layered organ composed of many histological layers. Its three main layers are: the epidermis, the dermis and the hypodermis. The epidermis is further divided
into 5 anatomical layers. The outermost layer is the stratum corneum which
is exposed to external environment. The transdermal permeation of neutral
molecules at steady state can be considered as a process of passive diffusion
through the stratum corneum in the interfollicular region.
General considerations for the use of Transdermal Drug Delivery systems
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