Microemulsions are clear, transparent, thermodynamically stable dispersions of oil and water, stabilized by an interfacial film of surfactant frequently in combination with a co-surfactant. Recently, there has been a considerable interest for the microemulsion formulation, for the delivery of hydrophilic as well as lipophilic drug as drug carriers because of its improved drug solubilization capacity, long shelf life, easy of preparation and improvement of bioavailability. In this present review, we discuss about the various advantages of microemulsion in pharmaceuticals, along with its preparation, evaluation and research work carried out on microemulsions.

The aim of this work was to prepare and evaluate the topical carbopol gel formulation containing ketoconazole encapsulated liposomes. Ketoconazole loaded liposomes were prepared by thin film hydration technique. The prepared liposomes were incorporated into 1% carbopol gel, and the systems were evaluated for in-vitro drug release, drug retention into skin and in-vitro antifungal activity. The in-vitro permeation of ketoconazole using wistar albino rat skin from liposomal gel was compared with that of plain drug gel and also with plain drug cream containing 2% w/w of ketoconazole. The release of ketoconazole from liposomal gel was much slower than from non liposomal formulations. Gel containing liposomal ketoconazole showed maximum antifungal activity after 30 hours over plain ketoconazole gel and cream formulations