Oily injections, small volume

Small-volume oily injections 7 Absorbable haemostats... 

Certain small-volume injections are available where the dmg is dissolved in a viscous oil because it is insoluble in water non-aqueous solvent must be used, hi addition, drags in non-aqueous solvents provide a depot effect, for example for hormonal compounds. The intramuscular route of injection must be used. The vehicle may be a metabolizable fixed oil such as arachis or sesame oil (but not a mineral oil) or an ester such as ethyl oleate which is also metabolizable. The latter is less viscous and therefore easier to administer but the depot effect is of shorter duration. The dmg is normally dissolved in the oil, filtered under pressure and distributed into ampoules. After sealing, the ampoules are sterilized by dry heat, for example, at 160°C for 2 hours. A bactericide is probably ineffective in such a medium and therefore offers very httle protection against contamination in a multidose oily injection. 

Small-volume injectable liquids are primarily aqueous solutions. However, because many important therapeutic agents are poorly soluble or totally insoluble in water, oily solvents and water-miscible cosolvents are used to produce ready-to-use solutions. 

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