Although there is a tendency to associate little plastic bottles with pharmaceuticals, people with severe allergies (who carry an EpiPen, for example), know there is a branch of pharmaceuticals that relies on glass packaging. According to the American Pharmaceutical Review website, 98% of injectable medications come in glass containers (23BN/pa). Along these lines, the strength and resilience of pharmaceutical glass was the topic at a recent meeting of the ICG. In early March, the ICG convened a special workshop in Berlin with a group of experts from the glass and pharmaceutical industries to discuss their future R&D needs and to map a course for continued development of unbreakable and chemically resistant glass. A release from the ICG reports the meeting fostered a better understanding of the interaction of the glass surface with pharmaceutical products, including delamination phenomena, adsorption effects and the influence of big molecules, that were seen as short term projects" that could be addressed by 2015. The ICG went on to say that other issues related to glass quality variances, extractable and leachable metal ions, and lubricants also could be solved by around 2015. However, the group said that more years would be needed to address "the fragililty of glass which creates problems in handling and device usage, transport and also particle contamination such as the effect of silicon oil and the deactivation of large molecules." Participants also recommended the ICG create a technical committee on glasses for pharmacy.
