Dosage form

They contain a mixture of active ingredients and inactive components (excipients), configured in a particular way (such as a capsule shell) and apportioned into a specific dose.

Due to the somewhat ambiguous nature and overlap of these terms within the pharmaceutical industry, caution is advisable when discussing them with others who may interpret the terminology differently.

For example, if a patient is unconscious or experiencing persistent nausea and vomiting, oral administration may not be feasible, necessitating the use of alternative routes, such as inhalational, buccal, sublingual, nasal, suppository, or parenteral.

Eye drops (normal saline in disposable packages) are distributed to syringe users by needle exchange programs.

[citation needed] The injection of talc from crushed pills has been associated with pulmonary talcosis in intravenous drug users.