A prominent example in the field of anesthesia is the propofol-containing drug emulsion Diprivan. This product, introduced in the mid 1980s, now has a large market for the induction and maintenance of anesthesia, and has been the most successful example of lipid emulsions applied to drug delivery so far. Improved solubility is critical to propofol's success. Propofol readily dissolves in soybean oil and gives a low concentration of the drug in the water phase. Because the concentration determines the pain on injection, this adds to the benefits of an emulsion formulation.
Propofol emulsions are now available as a generic product.
Several cytotoxic compounds with a lipophilic character have also been formulated in this manner, including taxol. Polar triglycerides The most direct way of developing a drug emulsion is to base the formulation on nutritional emulsion products. Intralipid and many others use soybean oil, with egg phospholipid as an emulsifier. If the solubility properties of the lipid matrix need to be adjusted to improve drug loading, other triglycerides are available. Much attention has been paid to perfluorocarbons as alternative carriers for active substances in disperse systems.