Formulation of the Extract of the Stem Bark of Alstonia Boonei as Tablet Dosage Form

Purpose: To formulate the extracts of the stem bark of Alstonia boonei; an important antimalarial herb; into tablet dosage form. Methods: Tablets were formulated using direct compression and wet granulation methods. The mechanical properties of the tablets were assessed using crushing strength and friability and the crushing strength:friability ratio (CSFR) while drug release properties were evaluated using disintegration and dissolution times. Results: There were statistically significant (p0.01) differences in the CSFR values and drug release properties of A. boonei tablets prepared by both methods. The differences depended on the type and concentration of excipient and binder employed in the formulation. Conclusions: The method of preparation of the A. boonei tablets needs to be carefully selected to ensure the production of tablets with adequate bond strength to withstand the rigours of handling and at the same time release the active compound (s) for biological action

Effects of Interacting Variables on the Tensile Strength and the Release Properties of Paracetamol Tablets

"PURPOSE: The individual and interaction effects of nature of binder (N); concentration of binder (C) and the relative density (D) on the tensile strength and release properties of paracetamol tablets have been studied using a 23 factorial experimental design. METHODOLOGY: Khaya gum; which represented the ""low"" level; and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP); which represented the ""high"" level; was used as binding agent at concentrations of 0.5 percent and 4 percentw/w in a paracetamol tablet formulation. The tensile strength; which is a measure of the bond strength of tablets; and the release properties of the tablets-measured by the disintegration and the dissolution times; were used as assessment parameters. RESULTS: Changing the concentration of binder and the relative density of the tablets from ""low"" to ""high"" led to an increase in the tensile strength and the disintegration and dissolution times of the tablets. The ranking of the individual coefficient values for the formulations was D less than N less than C for T and C > N less than D for the disintegration and dissolution parameters while the ranking for the interaction effects was N -D > N -C less than C - D for T and t[50]; N -C > N - D C -D for DT and C -D less than N -C > N -D for t[90]. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that khaya gum could be useful as an alternative binding agent to produce tablets with particular tensile strength and drug release profiles and there was considerable interaction between the variables employed on the tablet properties."

Comparative Analysis of Eight Brands of Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine Tablets

PURPOSE : The aim of the present study is to investigate the physicochemical equivalence of eight brands of tablets containing sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (antimalarial drug combination) sourced from different retail Pharmacy outlets in the Nigerian market. METHOD : The quality and physicochemical equivalence of eight different brands of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine combination tablets were assessed. The assessment included the evaluation of uniformity of weight; friability; crushing strength; disintegration and dissolution tests as well as chemical assay of the tablets. RESULTS : All the eight brands of the tablets passed the British Pharmacopoeia (BP) standards for uniformity of weight; disintegration and crushing strength. Three of the eight brands failed the friability test. One of the brands did not comply with the standard assay of content of active ingredients while another brand did not comply with the USP specifications for dissolution test for sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine tablets. There were no significant differences in the amounts of pyrimethamine and sulfadoxine released from the different brands (P greater than 0.05). CONCLUSION: Only three brands (registered by NAFDAC) out of the eight brands of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine tablets that were analysed passed all the BP quality specifications and were physically and chemically equivalent. This study highlights the need for constant market monitoring of new products to ascertain their equivalency to the innovator product