Olanzapine Orally Disintegrating Tablet: A Review of Efficacy and Compliance

Abstract

Medication nonadherence, especially in psychiatric disorders, has been associated with treatment failure and other negative outcomes. Orally disintegrating formulations have been developed as an alternative to improve medication adherence. This report reviews the properties, efficacy, and safety profile of olanzapine as an orally disintegrating tablet, and explores their association with medication compliance compared with standard oral formulation. Medical literature, published on orally disintegrating formulation of olanzapine identified using Pubmed and EMBASE, was used. Additional references were identified from the reference lists of published articles. Bibliographical information, including contributory unpublished data, was also requested from the company developing the drug. Studies evaluating the biostability, biodisposability, pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety of orally disintegrating olanzapine as treatment of patients with psychiatric disorders were reviewed. Measurement tools included the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Clinical Global Impressions-Severity (CGI-S), Simpson-Angus Scale (SAS), Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale, and Nursing Assessment of Medication Acceptance (NAMA). Orally disintegrating olanzapine, an effective atypical antipsychotic with an acceptable safety profile, can facilitate the burden of treatment on patients and caregivers due to its ease of administration. This is especially important in diseases such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, which can be chronic and require long-term treatment.

Discussion of Prevalence and Management of Discomfort When Swallowing Pills: Orodispersible Tablets Expand Treatment Options in Patients With Depression

“…Patient acceptance of a medication -and consequently its effectiveness -may be improved by switching to an ODT [51]. This appears to be the case with the olanzapine ODT.…”

“…This appears to be the case with the olanzapine ODT. Patients with schizophrenia and their caregivers reported enhanced ease of use with the ODT, leading to improved efficacy [51]. Weight gain is a potentially serious concern in patients with schizophrenia treated with antipsychotics [52].…”

“…Weight gain is a potentially serious concern in patients with schizophrenia treated with antipsychotics [52]. Surprisingly, patients treated with olanzapine ODT lost weight compared with previous treatment episodes with conventional olanzapine, although the mechanism for this side effect has not yet been identified [51]. The impact of olanzapine ODT on weight gain in patients not previously treated with conventional olanzapine remains to be investigated; however, the ease of use and unanticipated positive side effects conferred by this formulation make it an appealing alternative to hard tablets and capsules.…”

AripiprazoleMontmorillonite: A New Organic–Inorganic Nanohybrid Material for Biomedical Applications

“…[2] Although the use of tablets has been widely accepted for the delivery of APZ, the negative attitudes of the patients toward drug therapy have been problematic for the treatment of schizophrenia. [3] For example, complications that are associated with swallowing a tablet have appeared to cause the patients to be hesitant towards taking the medication, thereby resulting in a higher chance of drop-outs. [4] For this reason, APZ may be one of many drugs that need an easier delivery strategy than swallowing a tablet to achieve higher success in drug therapy for schizophrenia.…”

A Comparative Study Between Spray-Drying and Fluidized Bed Coating Processes for the Preparation of Pramipexole Controlled-Release Microparticles for Orally Disintegrating Tablets

“…[1][2][3] It can help to reduce the burden of treatment on patients and caregivers because of its easy administration. [4] There have been reports that demonstrated that patients preferred ODT to conventional tablets. [5,6] There are several patented technologies that have been applied for the preparation of commercial ODT products.…”