Enhancement of solubility and preparation of oral thin film of candesartan using various polymers

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to develop mouth dissolving films (MDF) of Candesartan for the treatment of high blood pressure and congestive heart failure, with fast disintegration, optimum morphological properties, and mechanical strength. Candesartan is an anti-hypertensive drug which undergoes extensive first-pass metabolism that results in low bioavailability of the drug. Through buccal route, the drug directly enters blood circulation and hence bioavailability of the drug increases. Carbopol, PectinandTragacanth were used as the film-forming polymeric bases and Poly propylene glycol as plasticizer. Films were prepared by solvent casting technique. Parameters like in-vitro disintegration time, tensile strength, content uniformity, folding endurance and in-vitro drug release were evaluated. In-vitro dissolution studies showed that 99.46% of Candesartan was released within 30 min with an average disintegration time of 12 sec. FTIR spectrophotometry were used to identify drug-excipient interactions. The formulation developed is simple, easy to prepare and economical with great applicability during the emergency cases such as Hypertension, whenever immediate onset of action is desired.