ABSTRACT
For a drug to be effective, it must be released from the dosage form, fully dissolved in the gastro-intestinal fluids, be stable as solution in the gastrointestinal fluids, pass through the gastrointestinal barriers into the mesenteric circulation without being metabolized, pass through the liver into the systemic circulation unchanged and reach its site of action. Food is one of the factors which interfere with these processes. The effect of Sudanese meals will be different due to their high contents of fats, proteins and fibers. This study aimed to determine the influence of milk and some Sudanese meals [Foul - Vicia faba -, "Gorrassah with damaa" and "Kissraa with sharmoot"' on the dissolution of ciprofloxacin HCI tablets and hence bioavailability. The influence of milk and the mentioned Sudanese meals on the dissolution of ciprofloxacin was studied using paddle dissolution apparatus. The dissolution of the drug was measured in the presence of each meal individually using U.V.- visible spectrophotometer. The samples were taken with 5 minutes intervals up to 30 minutes. The results obtained were compared to the results of the dissolution of this drug in simulated gastric fluid in fast state [0.1 N HCl]. The study revealed that the dissolution of ciprofloxacin in Sudanese meals is lower than its dissolution in milk- whose reduction of dissolution of ciprofloxacin was mentioned in a lot of studies world-wide. The order of the influence of Sudanese meals, used in the study, was foul followed by kissraa then gorrasah which showed that the influence was directly proportional to the viscosity of the meal. Using two different volumes of foul, the study revealed that influence of meals on the dissolution of ciprofloxacin was significant even small amounts were used