What is OPTIZORB® technology and how does it work?

Paracetamol tablets are easy to take, readily available, effective and suitable for large numbers of people. However, standard paracetamol tablets are sometimes slow to dissolve and absorb, and can sometimes take a long time to have an effect. The makers of PANADOL have developed a technology which allows the paracetamol to be absorbed faster than standard PANADOL tablets - this new technology is called Optizorb.

What happens when you swallow a tablet?

Stage 1 Disintegration - the tablet breaks apart into smaller pieces called granules

Stage 2 Dissolution - The granules break into particles small enough to dissolve in the stomach

Stage 3 Absorption - The particles are finally absorbed into the bloodstream – where the medicine can take effect

What makes PANADOL caplets and tablets containing Optizorb® technology different?

Unlike standard paracetamol tablets, PANADOL caplets and tablets with Optizorb® technology allow the paracetamol to be absorbed quickly so that it can get to work.¹

Optizorb technology is a combination of ingredients, which work together to speed up the rate at which the paracetamol tablet disintegrates and dissolves in the stomach.¹

These include:

1. A naturally occurring substance that makes the tablet act like a sponge so when it reaches the stomach it soaks up water, swells then breaks apart.
2. A common ingredient widely used in tablet formulations that, on contact with the stomach acids, releases small amounts of carbon dioxide which helps the tablet break up.
3. A ‘super-disintegrant’ which causes the tablet to swell even more, and speeds up the break up process.

The science of Optizorb technology allows the tablets to break down fast. For pain relief you can start to feel in as little as 15 minutes.*²

Panadol with Optizorb can still be used by a broad range of people including people with stomach ulcers and breastfeeding mothers.¹

* GSK data on file when taken at 1000mg dose

References

1. Panadol Caplets Optizorb Formulation Product Information, March 2010.
2. GSK Data on file.