:
According to the drug discovery, approximately 40% of the new chemical entities show
poor bioavailability due to their low aqueous solubility. In order to increase the solubility of the
drugs, self-micro emulsifying drug delivery systems (SMEDDS) are considered as an ideal technology
for enhancing the permeability of poorly soluble drugs in GI membranes. The SMEDDS are also
generally used to enhance the oral bioavailability of the hydrophobic drugs. At present, most of the
self-microemulsion drugs are liquid dosage forms, which could cause some disadvantages, such as
the low bioavailability of the traditional liquid SMEDDS. Therefore, solid self-micro emulsifying
drug delivery systems (S-SMEDDS) have emerged widely in recent years, which were prepared by
solidifying a semi-solid or liquid self-emulsifying (SE) ingredient into a powder in order to improve
stability, treatment and patient compliance. The article gives a comprehensive introduction of the
study of SMEDDS which could effectively tackle the problem of the water-insoluble drug, especially
the development of solidification technology of SMEDDS. Finally, the present challenges and the
prospects in this field were also discussed.
