Formulation and in vitro evaluation of flurbiprofen-polyethylene glycol 20000 solid dispersions.

Solid dispersion is one of the most widely used methods to enhance the solubility and dissolution rate of poor water soluble drugs. In the present study, flurbiprofen solid dispersions were prepared using solvent evaporation method by incorporating polyethylene glycol 20000 and evaluated for solubility studies, drug-carrier compatibility studies and in vitro dissolution studies. From the solubility studies, formulations F4 were selected to prepare in the form of tablets and compared with control tablets (conventional tablets using pure drug). From the results of in vitro dissolution study, tablets containing polyethylene glycol 20000 showed almost complete drug release within the 15 min. The percent drug release in 15 min (Q15) and initial dissolution rate for formulation F4 was 99.26±1.12%, 6.62%/min. These were very much higher compared to control tablets (34.95±1.29%, 2.33%/min). The relative dissolution rate was found to be 2.84 and dissolution efficiency was found to be 57.48 and it is increased by 3.5 fold with F4 formulation compared to control tablets (17.91). From the above results, it is concluded that the formulation of solid dispersions using polyethylene glycol 20000 is a suitable approach to improve the solubility and dissolution rate of flurbiprofen.

Formulation, Evaluation and Pharmacokinetics of Flurbiprofen Fast Dissolving Tablets.

Aim: The intent of present study is to formulate fast dissolving tablets of flurbiprofen using different superdisintegrants to improve the dissolution and bioavailability. Place and Duration of Study: Jyothishmathi Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Karimnagar, Andhra Pradesh, India, between January 2011 and December 2012. Methodology: Flurbiprofen fast dissolving tablets were prepared using different superdisintegrants and characterized for different physical parameters, DSC, FTIR studies, in vitro dissolution studies and in vivo pharmacokinetics to prove the enhancement of bioavailability. Results: From the in vitro dissolution studies, the percent drug release in 15 min (Q15) was found to be 91.46±1.42% in case of optimized formulation where as the conventional tablets prepared by similar manner showed 22.92±0.47% in 15 min. The initial dissolution rate and dissolution efficiency for optimized formulation was 6.10%/min and 53.44 but it was 1.53%/min and 10.96 in conventional tablets. They increased by 4.0 folds when compared to conventional tablets. From the pharmacokinetic evaluation, the optimized fast dissolving tablets produced peak plasma concentration (Cmax) as 11433.32 ng/ml at 2 h Tmax, but they were found to be 8792.64 ng/ml at 3 h Tmax, in case of conventional tablets. The area under the curve for the optimized fast dissolving and conventional tablets were found to be 42691.23 and 30727.14 ng-h/ml. Conclusion: In summary, formulation of fast dissolving tablets using superdisintegrants was a good approach to enhance the dissolution and absorption rates of flurbiprofen.