- Presented in a lipid water emulsion due to lipid-soluble nature
- Emulsion contains (% by weight)
- Propofol (1% or 2%)
- Soya-bean oil (10%) - acts as lipid solvent for propofol
- Purified egg lecithin, a type of phosphatide (1.2%) - emulsifying agent that stabilise the oil drops in aqueous liquid
- Glycerol - maintains isotonicity with blood
- Sodium hydroxide - adjusts the pH to provide optimum stability
- Can act as bacterial culture medium:
- Bacteriostatic EDTA added to reduce the risk of bacterial contamination
- Infusions should be discarded after a maximum of 12 hours from the start
