Aerosolization performance of jet nebulizers and biopharmaceutical aspects

In this work, 13 jet nebulizers, some of which in different configurations, were investigated in order to identify the biopharmaceutical constraints related to the quality attributes of the medicinal products, which affect their safety, efficiency, compliance, and effectiveness. The aerosolization parameters, including the aerosol output, aerosol output rate, mass median aerodynamic diameter, and fine particle fraction, were determined according to the European Standard EN 13544-1, using sodium fluoride as a reference formulation. A comparison between the aerosol output nebulization time and the fine particle fraction displayed a correlation between the aerosol quality and the nebulization rate. Indeed, the quality of the nebulization significantly increased when the rate of aerosol emission was reduced. Moreover, the performance of the nebulizers was analyzed in terms of respirable delivered dose and respirable dose delivery rate, which characterize nebulization as the rate and amount of respirable product that could be deposited into the lungs. Depending on which of these two latter parameters was used, the nebulizers showed different performances. The differences, in terms of the rate and amount of delivered aerosol, could provide relevant information for the appropriate choice of nebulizer as a function of drug product, therapy, and patient characteristics.