Current Trends in Self-Emulsifying Drug Delivery Systems (SEDDSs) to Enhance the Bioavailability of Poorly Water-Soluble Drugs.

The main object of the self-emulsifying drug-delivery system (SEDDS) is oral bioavailability (BA) enhancement of a poorly water-soluble drug. Low aqueous solubility and low oral BA are major concerns for formulation scientists. As many drugs are lipophilic in nature, their lower solubility and dissolution are major drawbacks for their successful formulation into oral dosage forms. More than 60% of drugs have a lipophilic nature and exhibit poor aqueous solubility. Various strategies are reported in the literature to improve the solubility and enhance BA of lipophilic drugs, including the formation of a cyclodextrin complex, solid dispersions, and micronization. SEDDSs are ideally isotropic mixtures of drug, oil, surfactant, and/or cosurfactant. SEDDSs have gained increasing attention for enhancing oral BA and reducing drug dose. SEDDSs also provide an effective and excellent solution to the various issues related to the formulation of hydrophobic drugs that have limited solubility in gastrointestinal fluid. Our major focus of this review is to highlight the importance of SEDDSs in oral BA enhancement of poorly water-soluble drugs.