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Displacement Value Calculation: Six Easy Steps

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 Displacement Value Calculation: Six
Easy Steps
Author: G. Kishore Babu., M. Pharm (Ph.D)
Displacement Value can be defined as the
volume of drug that displaces 1 gram of
suppository base. The most commonly used
suppository base is Coca Butter or Theobroma
oil. Traditionally suppositories are prepared
using suppositories molds which can generally
hold 1 gram or 2 gram of base. i.e. the volume
of the mold generally remains constant and
cannot change. Whenever we add drug or other
excipients to the base the drug occupies some of
the space and displaces certain quantity of
base. Let me help you to understand this by
reminding you a simple story “The crow and the
pebbel” that we learn from our child hood.
The story concerns a thirsty crow that comes
upon a pitcher with water at the bottom,
beyond the reach of its beak. After failing to
push it over, the bird drops in pebbles one by
one until the water rises to the top of the
pitcher1. Let’s forget the moral and understand
the physics in it, whenever the crow adds the
pebble it occupies some space and displaces
the water. The amount of water displaced is
equal to the volume of the pebble.
Fig: the crow and the picture illustrated
by milo winter1.
Image Source: Wikipedia
Same as the crow and pebble story
whenever we add drug, the base is
displaced i.e. to prepare required number
of suppositories we need to calculate the
amount of base required. As we know the
base is displaced by drug i.e. the total
weight of base required is less than the
theoretical weight. In order to calculate
total amount of base required
Displacement value of the drug is used by
pharmacists and suppository
manufacturers.
To calculate displacement value of drug
I have six simple steps for you:
Step I: Theoretical weight of total Base
required.
Step II: Theoretical weight of total drug
required.
Step III: Theoretical weight of total
suppositories = (Step I +Step II) i.e.
Theoretical weight of total Base required.
+ Theoretical weight of total drug
required.
Step IV: Practical Weight of total
suppositories
Step V : Difference in weight = (Step III -
Step IV) Theoretical weight of total
suppositories - Practical Weight of total
suppositories
Step VI: Displacement value = (Step II/
Step V) Theoretical weight of total drug /
Difference in total weight of suppositories.
From the above steps we can also define
the displacement value as the ratio of
theoretical weight of the drug to that of
difference in total weight of suppositories.
Let us do some problems to check our
method. The problems can be found in,
http://ksupc.com/download/xArchive/le
vel3_PHD/433/Pharmaceutical%20Calcul
ations/TX68128_C09.pdf2.
 Displacement Value Calculation: Six
Easy Steps
Author: G. Kishore Babu., M. Pharm (Ph.D)

Step VI: Displacement value = (Step II/

Problem 1: If a prescription requires 400
mg of bismuth subgallate per suppository
Weighing two grams, what would be the
displacement value? if it is known that
six suppositories with required bismuth
subgallate weigh 13.6 g?
Step V) Theoretical weight of total drug /
Difference in total weight of suppositories.
i.e 2.4 g / 0.8 g = 3
Ans: Displacement value of Bismuth
Subgallate is 3*.

Step I: Theoretical weight of total Base *Note: as displacement value is a ratio,

required. = No of suppositories X weight of dimensional analysis results in no dimensions. i.e.
displacement value is a dimensionless quantity.
each suppository.
Problem 2: If 12 theobroma oil
i.e. 6 X 2g = 12g
suppositories containing 40% zinc oxide
weigh 17.6 grams, what is the
Step II: Theoretical weight of total drug
displacement value of zinc oxide? Assume
required. = No of suppositories X weight of
that the suppositories are made in a 1-g
drug in each suppository.
mold.
i.e. 6 X 400mg = 2400mg* or 2.4g
Step I: Theoretical weight of total Base
(Converting mille grams to gams as
required. = No of suppositories X weight of
weight is given in grams. 2400/1000 =
each suppository.
2.4)
i.e. 12 X 1g = 12g
Step III: Theoretical weight of total
suppositories = (Step I +Step II) i.e.
Step II: Theoretical weight of total drug
Theoretical weight of total Base required.
required. = No of suppositories X weight of
+ Theoretical weight of total drug
drug in each suppository.
required.
In the problem the weight is given in %
i.e. 12 g + 2.4 g = 14.4g
therefore first lets calculate weight of drug
in each suppository.
Step IV: Practical Weight of total
suppositories
40% zinc oxide in 17.6 g
i.e. as given in problem = 13.6g
i.e. (40/100) X 17.6 = 7.04 g
Step V : Difference in weight = (Step III -
7.04 g is the total amount of drug present
Step IV) Theoretical weight of total
in 12 suppositories i.e. amount present in
suppositories - Practical Weight of total
1 suppository = 7.04g/12 = 0.587 g
suppositories

i.e. 14.4 g – 13.6 g = 0.8 g

i.e. 12 X 0.587 g = 7.04 g
 Displacement Value Calculation: Six
Easy Steps
Author: G. Kishore Babu., M. Pharm (Ph.D)
Step III: Theoretical weight of total
suppositories = (Step I +Step II) i.e.
Theoretical weight of total Base required.
+ Theoretical weight of total drug
required.
i.e. 12 g + 7.04 g = 19.04g
Step IV: Practical Weight of total
suppositories
i.e. as given in problem = 17.6g
Step V : Difference in weight = (Step III -
Step IV) Theoretical weight of total
suppositories - Practical Weight of total
suppositories
i.e. 19.04 g – 17.6 g = 1.44 g
Step VI: Displacement value = (Step II/
Step V) Theoretical weight of total drug /
Difference in total weight of suppositories.
i.e 7.04 g / 1.44 g = 4.8889 = 4.89.
Practice Problems:
1. What would be the displacement value
of hydrocortisone acetate if it is known
that six suppositories containing 125
mg each of the drug weigh 12.95 g?
2. What would be the displacement value
of ipeca extract if it is known that 8
suppositories containing 60 mg each of
the drug weigh 16.18 g?
3. If a prescription requires 500 mg of
mesalamine one per suppository of two
grams, what would be the
displacement value if it is known that
25 suppositories with required
bismuth subgallate weigh 56.14 g?
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4. 4 phenobarbital sodium suppositories
containing 30 mg of drug each weighs
4 g. The mold of suppository used was
2 g. what the displacement value is.
5. Ten ciprofloxacin hydrochloride
suppositories containing 500 mg of
drug each, weigh 27 g. The mold of
suppository used was 2 g.
6. If 8 cocoa butter suppositories
containing 34% povidone iodine
weigh 35.2grams, what is the
displacement value if these
Suppositories are made in a I-g mold.
References:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_
Crow_and_the_Pitcher
2. http://ksupc.com/download/xArc
hive/level3_PHD/433/Pharmaceuti
cal%20Calculations/TX68128_C09.
pdf
For any queries regarding the
problems please write for
correspondence”
G. Kishore Babu., M.Pharm., (Ph.D
Associate Professor,
Dept. of. Pharmaceutics.
Vignan Pharmacy College
Vadlumudi, Guntur. 522213
Email: kishorempharm@gmail.com