Velocity profiling of sprays from pharmaceutical nasal pumps

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommend that nasal spray products be characterized with regard to their emitted spray, e.g. droplet particle size, spray pattern and plume geometry (1). Nasal spray velocity could influence characteristics such as the pattern of the spray and the geometry of the emitted plume. It has also been suggested that spray velocity may influence particle penetration into the nasal cavity and consequently affect nasal deposition of the delivered drug (2). Nasal spray/plume velocities have been measured experimentally using light imaging techniques at various points in the plume. These
measurements can contribute to a better understanding of the effects of spray characteristics on particle transport and deposition in the nasal cavity.