Conventional dosage forms for topical and transdermal drug delivery have several disadvantages related mainly to its poor skin permeation and patient compliance. Many approaches have been developed to improve these dosage forms. Film forming drug delivery systems represents a recent advancement in this field. It provides improved patient compliance with enhanced skin permeation of drugs. In its simplest form, these consist of a polymeric solution, usually in a supersaturated state, in a suitable solvent. A plasticizer is usually added to improve the flexibility and enhance the tensile strength to the film. It is also possible to control and sustain the drug release from the films by controlling the polymeric content, concentration of plasticizer, or formulation with other additives. In this review, we are summarizing the mechanism of formation of these films as well as its types and possible applications. The main ingredients, properties, and evaluation of the various film forming delivery systems are also discussed.
