Formulate and Evaluate Famciclovir Floating Tablets

Floating drug delivery system of famciclovir was developed to prolong gastric residence time, target stomach mucosa and increase drug bioavailability by using different polymers like HPMC E15, Xanthan gum, methyl cellulose and compritol 888 ATO with different concentration. Famciclovir capable of floating in the gastric condition were formulated and evaluated. The gel bits were prepared by wet granulation method by employing sodium bicarbonate and citric acid as effervescence generating agent. Drug and polymer compatibility were studied by subjecting physical mixtures of drug and polymers to FT IR studies.

The formulation variables like hardness, polymer, concentrations and shape of the tablets were optimized to achieve the floating nature of the tablet in stomach for 24 hours. In addition, ethyl cellulose was also included in this formulation to evaluate their release characteristics. Among all the formulations F6 formulation 1 which contain 20% HPMC E15 was selected as optimized formulation because the drug release up to 12 hours exhibited better buoyancy and less floating lag time.

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Excipients: HPMC E15, Xanthan gum, guar gum, ethyl cellulose, MCC, Lactose, Mannitol and Compritol 888 ATO.

Conclusion: Prepared tablets showed acceptable weight variation, hardness & content uniformity. A lesser floating lag time and a prolonged floating duration could be achieved by using different polymers. Among all the formulations F1 and F2 containing HPMC E 15 has lesser floating lag time and prolonged duration. Among these two formulations F6 have lesser floating lag time and accurate amount of drug release can be observed. The drug release was further controlled by the presence of sodium bicarbonate with citric acid by the generation of carbon dioxide. The optimized formulation F6 was subjected to FI IR compatibility studies, which indicates no chemical interaction between drug and excipient. In the present work floating tablets of Famciclovir are formulated to provide sustained release of drug with the aim of providing an effective and safe therapy for viral infections with a reduced dose, increased bioavailability, Suitable drug release pattern for several hours by reduced length of treatment. On conclusion, this novel drug delivery system i.e., floating system offers a valuable dosage form which delivers the drug at a controlled rate and at a specific site. The floating dosage form was found to be a feasible approach in delivering Famciclovir to the upper gastrointestinal tract to maximize the drug absorption due to the presence of a biological window comprised of the upper gastrointestinal tract.