المنشورات البحثية

Emulsification/internal gelation as a method for preparation of diclofenac sodium–sodium alginate microparticles

Mahmoud M.Ahmed Saleh Abd El-Rasoul, Sayed H. Auda, Mohamed A.Ibrahim

Emulsification/internal gelation has been suggested as an alternative to extrusion/external gelation in the encapsulation of several compounds including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as diclofenac sodium. The objective of the present study was a trial to formulate diclofenac sodium as controlled release microparticles that might be administered once or twice daily. This could be achieved via emulsification/internal gelation technique applying Box-Behnken design to choose these formulae. Box-Behnken design determined fifteen formulae containing specified amounts of the independent variables, which included stirring speed in rpm (X1), drug:polymer ratio (X2) and the surfactant span 80% (X3). The dependent variables studied were cumulative percent release after two hours (Y1), four hours (Y2) and eight hours (Y3). The prepared microparticles were characterized for their production yield, sizes