Patent ID: 8367118

Claim:
A process for making a solid dispersion consisting of a sparingly water-soluble drug, hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose acetate succinate (HPMCAS), and a surface-active agent, said drug being molecularly dispersed and amorphous in said dispersion, said process consisting essentially of the steps of: (a) providing a solution consisting of a sparingly water-soluble drug, HPMCAS, a surface-active agent, and a solvent or a solvent and water mixture, said solvent being a compound in which said drug, said surface-active agent, and HPMCAS are mutually soluble, said solution having a ratio of said drug to HPMCAS of from 1 to 0.4 to 1 to 20; (b) breaking up said solution into small droplets, wherein said droplets range in size from 1 to 500 μm; (c) directing said droplets and a drying gas into a drying chamber to cause evaporation of a sufficient amount of said solvent from said droplets to cause solidification of said droplets in less than 5 seconds to form said solid dispersion.