Screening of mucoadhesive microparticles containing hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin for the nasal delivery of risperidone.

Interaction of the antipsychotic drug risperidone with hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HPBCD) in solution and in the solid state was studied with the aim of overcoming the limitations associated with nasal administration of low solubility drugs. Risperidone solubility studies revealed inclusion complex formation with a 1:1 stoichiometry. Low concentrations (0.1 w/v %) of hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC) and carbomer affected risperidone solubility in water. No formation of a ternary complex was detected. The solid inclusion complex was prepared by spray drying and was characterised by thermal (DSC) and spectral (FTIR) analyses. Risperidone and the inclusion complex were loaded into microparticles by spray drying using HPMC, carbomer and HPMC/carbomer interpolymer complex (IPC) as mucoadhesive components. The microparticles were characterised with respect to drug loading, particle size distribution, thermal analysis, and zeta potential measurements. Mucoadhesive properties of the microparticles were studied by measuring the work of adhesion. Carbomer and IPC based microparticles revealed superior mucoadhesive microparticles compared to HPMC based microparticles. Drug incorporation into microparticles reduced their mucoadhesive properties, while incorporation of the cyclodextrin complex caused no additional reduction in mucoadhesion. The in vitro dissolution studies showed that formation of the inclusion complex significantly increased the risperidone dissolution rate from the microparticles, thus providing sustained drug release.

Influence of cyclodextrin complexation on piroxicam gel formulations.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the role of cyclodextrins in topical drug formulations. Solid piroxicam (PX) complexes with beta-cyclodextrin (beta-CD) and randomly methylated beta-cyclodextrin (RAMEB) were prepared by freeze-drying and characterized using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray powder diffractometry (XRPD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and near infrared spectroscopy (NIR). A physical mixture of PX and cyclodextrins was characterized by enhanced dissolution properties compared to the dissolution profile of the pure drug due to in situ complex formation. Formation of the PX-cyclodextrin inclusion complex additionally improved the drug dissolution properties. Influence of CDs on drug permeation from the water dispersion and the prepared hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) gels was investigated. Permeation of the drug involved three consecutive processes: dissolution of the solid phase, diffusion across the swollen polymer matrix and drug permeation through the membrane. Complexation increased PX diffusion by increasing the amount of diffusible species in the donor phase. Slower drug diffusion through the HPMC matrix was the rate limiting step in the overall diffusion process. Possible interaction between the hydrophilic polymer and cyclodextrin may result in physicochemical changes, especially in a change of rheological parameters.

Prescribing medication errors in hospitalised patients: a prospective study.

The aims of this prospective study were to determine the incidence and types of prescribing medication errors and ways to prevent them from reaching patients. Data were collected from 4951 prescriptions over a 25 week period in 2002. Medication errors were classified as: incorrect dose, incorrect dose interval, duplication of therapy and drug interactions. The medical record analysis was used to compare prescribing with Croatian literature drug data and AHFS first Web version 2 (American Society of Health System Pharmacists). The incidence of medication errors in the entire sample, including all potential drug interactions, was 14.7%. However, as only 8 interactions (out of 356 potentially possible interactions) were assessed as clinically significant, then the total number of all types of medication errors was 379. This resulted in an incidence of 7.7%. Dosage errors were the most frequent errors, followed by incorrect interval, drug duplication and drug interaction. The difference between the incidence of potentially possible and clinically significant drug interactions was quite large (7.2 vs. 0.2%). Thus, a critical attitude is necessary when evaluating available data on drug interactions. Our findings point to the need of systematic control of prescribed therapies, which could be ensured by the application of the Unit Dose Drug Distribution System. A medication errors reporting program should be established both at the hospital and at national levels in Croatia.

Multicomponent complexes of piroxicam with cyclodextrins and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) on the complexation of piroxicam (PX) with beta-cyclodextrin (beta-CD) and dimethyl-beta-cyclodextrin (DM-beta-CD) in solution and in the solid state. Phase solubility study revealed a positive effect of the polymer on the drug complexation. Improvement in stability constants values, Ks, of ternary complexes clearly proves the benefit of the HPMC addition for promoting higher complexation efficiency. Solid binary and ternary complexes were prepared by spray drying. Drug-CD and drug-CD-polymer interactions were studied in the solid state by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), zeta-potential measurements, and particle size distribution. A marked increase in the PX dissolution rate was observed even in binary and ternary complexes. The presence of HPMC in ternary complexes slightly retarded the release of PX. Cyclodextrin complexation increased the PX concentration gradient over the semipermeable membrane, resulting in an increased PX flux. The retarded diffusion of PX to the membrane interface decreased the PX flux values of the ternary complexes.

Influence of hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin complexation on piroxicam release from buccoadhesive tablets.

Interaction of piroxicam (PX) and hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HPbetaCD) was investigated in solution and in the solid state. Solubility studies demonstrated the formation of the PX-HPbetaCD inclusion complex with 1:1 stoichiometry. Equimolecular PX-HPbetaCD solid systems were prepared and characterized by differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffractometry. Modification of the release of a sparingly water-soluble drug, PX, from hydrophilic matrices using cyclodextrin complexation was evaluated. The buccoadhesive controlled release tablets for the delivery of PX were prepared by direct compression of hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC) and Carbopol 940 (C940), which showed superior bioadhesion properties compared to HPMC. The tablets were evaluated for their dissolution, swelling and mucoadhesive properties. The in vitro release results demonstrated that matrix tablets containing the PX-HPbetaCD solid complex displayed faster PX release compared to those containing a physical mixture or "free" drug. Differences in release rates of PX from the tablets could be attributed to the presence of the polymers and to cyclodextrin complexation. The effect of the polymers on PX release can affect the drug solubility (complexation) and polymer water uptake (swelling). Higher polymer water uptake may result in higher drug solubility and diffusivity in a hydrated polymeric environment. Drug complexation affected also its diffusivity through the semipermeable membrane.