The urinary bladder stores urine until the time of urination. Systemic administration of drugs to treat bladder diseases faces several limitations. Therefore, intravesical drug delivery is a promising alternative route of administration. An in-situ gel is used to form a gel inside the bladder cavity and ensure continuous release of the drug even after urination. The objective of the present study was to optimize an in-situ gel formulation of poloxamer and chitosan for intravesical delivery of ketorolac tromethamine. The gelling temperature of the prepared combinations ranged from 20.67 to 25.8 °C. In-vitro release of KT was sustained for up to 7 h using a poloxamer concentration ranging from 17% to 19% and a chitosan concentration ranging from 1% to 2%. Design-Expert® 10 was used to select the optimized formulation (poloxamer/chitosan 17/1.589% w/w) which significantly (p < 0.05) extended the drug release more than each polymer alone. An ex-vivo study showed the ability of the optimized formulation to sustain drug release after emptying two times to mimic urination. Furthermore, the formed gel adhered to the bladder tissue throughout the time period of the experiment. Intravesical administration of the optimized formulation to rabbits via catheter showed no obstruction of urine flow and continuous release of the drug for 12 h.

Diclofenac sodium (DS) a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug has a bitter taste and is a local stomach irritant. The aim of this study was to formulate taste masked DS orally dispersible tablets (ODTs) with targeted drug release in the intestine. Pellets of DS were designed using sugar sphere cores layered with DS followed by an enteric coat of Eudragit L100 and a second coat of Eudragit E100 for taste masking. The produced pellets had a high loading efficiency of 99.52% with diameters ranging from 493.7 to 638.9 µm. The prepared pellets were spherical with smooth surfaces on scanning electron microscopy examination. Pellets with the 12% enteric coat Eudragit L100 followed by 5% Eudragit E 100 resulted in 1.4 ± 0.5% DS release in simulated gastric fluid (SGF) and complete dissolution in simulated intestinal fluid (SIF). The pellets were then used to formulate ODTs. In vitro disintegration time of ODTs ranged from 20 ± 0.26 to 46 ± 0.27 s in simulated saliva fluid (SSF). Dissolution was less than 10% in SGF while complete drug release occurred in SIF. The release rate was higher for the optimized formulation (F12) in SIF than for the marketed product Voltaren® 25 mg tablets. The optimized ODTs formulation had a palatable highly acceptable taste.

Flibanserin (FLB), an antiserotonin drug, is used to treat women with hypoactive sexual appetite disorder. FLB shows low bioavailability (~33%) probably due to its low water solubility. The current study investigated the impact of hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) and sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) on the dissolution and permeation of FLB. HP-β-CD–FLB inclusion complexes were prepared using physical mixing and kneading at 1:1 and 1:2 M ratios and characterized using differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and powder X-ray diffractometry. The dissolution and permeation of the complexes through a cellophane membrane were performed in, 0.1, 0.3 and 0.5% SLS in phosphate buffer (pH 6.8).

The present study aims to design and optimize the lornoxicam dispersible tablet (LXDT) formulation using the Quality by design (QbD) approach. A randomized Box–Behnken experimental design was used to characterize the effect of the critical factors, such as filler (MCC/Mannitol) ratio, mixing time, and disintegrant concentration, and assessed for their impacts on the critical quality attributes (responses), including dispersibility time, friability, dissolution efficiency, and content uniformity, respectively. The drug-excipients interaction of the formulation was investigated using FTIR and DSC, respectively. The accelerated stability study at 40 °C/75% relative humidity was performed. FTIR revealed an absence of any significant chemical interaction in solid state. DSC thermogram suggested that LX endothermic peak was slightly decreased due to the dilution effect. LXDT formulations exhibited acceptable friability (0.2 to 0.9%). The dissolution efficiency of LXDT formulations ranged from 72.21 to 93.63%. The overall study showed that the optimum level of independent factors was found to be 3:1 MCC/Mannitol, 11 min mixing time, and 6.23% disintegrant concentration. Accelerated stability studies showed the compendial acceptable hardness, friability, and disintegration times. The application of QbD approach can help in the detailed understanding of the effect of CMAs and CPPs on the CQAs on LXDT final product.

Recent advances in drug delivery systems have aimed to achieve better patient compliance. One of these advances is the formulation of orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs) that dissolve instantaneously, releasing drugs within a few seconds without the need of water. The main objective of this paper was to prepare and develop ODTs of clopidogrel. The ODTs were prepared by direct compression. The effect of three superdisintegrants, namely crospovidone, croscarmellose sodium, and sodium starch glycolate, using three different disintegration times on the dissolution rate was investigated. The prepared tablets were evaluated for hardness, friability, disintegration time and in vitro drug release. Furthermore, the interaction of clopidogrel with the formulation excipients was studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). DSC studies revealed that there were no interactions between the drug and the excipients used. All tablets had hardness values in the range 4.0-5.2 kp and friability lower than 1%. The weight and drug content uniformity of all formulations was within official limits according to BP. In vitro drug release studies of the ODTs showed that more than 90% of the drug was released within ten minutes. A palatability test in human volunteers showed acceptable taste and mouth feel. Thus, the obtained results conclusively demonstrated successful rapid disintegration of the formulated tablets and acceptable palatability.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of Carbopol^® 71G-NF on the release of dextromethorphan hydrobromide (DM) from matrix tablets in comparison with hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC^® K15M) and Eudragit^® L100-55 polymers. Controlled release DM matrix tablets were prepared using Carbopol 71G-NF, HPMC K15M, and Eudragit L100-55 at different drug to polymer ratios by direct compression technique. The mechanical properties of the tablets as tested by crushing strength and friability tests were improved as the concentration of Carbopol, HPMC, and Eudragit increased. However, Carbopol-based tablets showed a significantly (P < 0.05) higher crushing strength and a lower friability than HPMC and Eudragit tablets. No significant differences in weight uniformity and thickness values were observed between the different formulations. It was also found that Carbopol significantly (P < 0.05) delayed the release of DM in comparison with HPMC K15M and Eudragit L100-55. A combination of HPMC K15M and Eudragit L100-55 in a 1:1 ratio at 20 and 30% significantly (P < 0.05) delayed the release of DM than Eudragit L100-55 alone. Moreover, blends of Carbopol and HPMC at a 1:1 ratio at the 10, 20, and 30% total polymer concentration were investigated. The blend of Carbopol and HPMC at 10% level significantly (P < 0.05) slowed the release of DM than Carbopol or HPMC alone, whereas blends at 20 and 30% level significantly (P < 0.05) delayed the release of DM compared with HPMC or Carbopol alone. The results with these polymer blends showed that it was possible to reduce the total amount of polymers when used as a combination in formulation.