Skip to main content
PMC home page
Gut logoLink to Gut
. 1986 Aug;27(8):886–892. doi: 10.1136/gut.27.8.886

Transit of pharmaceutical dosage forms through the small intestine.

S S Davis, J G Hardy, J W Fara
PMCID: PMC1433369  PMID: 3732895

Abstract

The gastrointestinal transit of pharmaceutical dosage forms has been measured in 201 studies in normal subjects using gamma scintigraphy. Solutions, small pellets, and single units (matrix tablets and osmotic pumps) were administered with different amounts of food in the stomach, ranging from fasted state to heavy breakfast. Gastric emptying was affected by the nature of the dosage form and the presence of food in the stomach. Solutions and pellets were emptied even when the stomach was in the digestive mode, while single units were retained for long periods of time, depending on the size of the meal. In contrast, measured intestinal transit times were independent of the dosage form and fed state. The small intestinal transit time of about three hours (mean +/- 1 h SEM) has implications for the design of dosage forms for the sustained release of drugs in specific positions in the gastrointestinal tract.

Full text

PDF
890

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Cann P. A., Read N. W., Brown C., Hobson N., Holdsworth C. D. Irritable bowel syndrome: relationship of disorders in the transit of a single solid meal to symptom patterns. Gut. 1983 May;24(5):405–411. doi: 10.1136/gut.24.5.405. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Cann P. A., Read N. W., Holdsworth C. D. Oral domperidone: double blind comparison with placebo in irritable bowel syndrome. Gut. 1983 Dec;24(12):1135–1140. doi: 10.1136/gut.24.12.1135. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Caride V. J., Prokop E. K., Troncale F. J., Buddoura W., Winchenbach K., McCallum R. W. Scintigraphic determination of small intestinal transit time: comparison with the hydrogen breath technique. Gastroenterology. 1984 Apr;86(4):714–720. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Hardy J. G., Perkins A. C. Validity of the geometric mean correction in the quantification of whole bowel transit. Nucl Med Commun. 1985 Apr;6(4):217–224. doi: 10.1097/00006231-198504000-00005. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Jian R., Najean Y., Bernier J. J. Measurement of intestinal progression of a meal and its residues in normal subjects and patients with functional diarrhoea by a dual isotope technique. Gut. 1984 Jul;25(7):728–731. doi: 10.1136/gut.25.7.728. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Kerlin P., Zinsmeister A., Phillips S. Relationship of motility to flow of contents in the human small intestine. Gastroenterology. 1982 Apr;82(4):701–706. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Malagelada J. R., Robertson J. S., Brown M. L., Remington M., Duenes J. A., Thomforde G. M., Carryer P. W. Intestinal transit of solid and liquid components of a meal in health. Gastroenterology. 1984 Dec;87(6):1255–1263. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Müller-Lissner S. A., Blum A. L. The effect of specific gravity and eating on gastric emptying of slow-release capsules. N Engl J Med. 1981 May 28;304(22):1365–1366. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198105283042220. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Read N. W., Cammack J., Edwards C., Holgate A. M., Cann P. A., Brown C. Is the transit time of a meal through the small intestine related to the rate at which it leaves the stomach? Gut. 1982 Oct;23(10):824–828. doi: 10.1136/gut.23.10.824. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Read N. W., Miles C. A., Fisher D., Holgate A. M., Kime N. D., Mitchell M. A., Reeve A. M., Roche T. B., Walker M. Transit of a meal through the stomach, small intestine, and colon in normal subjects and its role in the pathogenesis of diarrhea. Gastroenterology. 1980 Dec;79(6):1276–1282. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Read N. W. Small bowel transit time of food in man: measurement, regulation and possible importance. Scand J Gastroenterol Suppl. 1984;96:77–85. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Thompson D. G., Wingate D. L., Thomas M., Harrison D. Gastric emptying as a determinant of the oral glucose tolerance test. Gastroenterology. 1982 Jan;82(1):51–55. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Vere D. Death from sustained release morphine sulphate. Lancet. 1984 Jun 30;1(8392):1477–1477. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(84)91979-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Gut are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES