Viscosity is a liquid’s resistance to flow. A liquid with a high viscosity is more “dense” and less fluid, while a liquid with a low viscosity is more “fluid” and more fluid.
Ensuring drug products have the correct viscosity is critical to the stability and efficacy of the formulation.
Topical Products:
The correct viscosity for creams, gels and ointments is essential to ensure comfortable application and spread on the skin.
Oral Syrups:
The swallowability of syrups depends on their right viscosity. Easier-to-swallow formulations should be provided for children or patients.
Solutions for IV and Injection:
The viscosity of IV solutions or injectable drugs is a critical parameter for easy injection.
Suspensions and Emulsions:
The fluidity properties of suspension and emulsion formulations affect the efficacy of drugs and the ease of administration to the patient.
Viscosity testing is an important test for the quality control of drugs, especially liquid formulations, such as oral drops, intravenous (IV), injectable solutions, topical creams, gels and suspensions.