Albendazole solid dispersions in nicotinamide: Solid state characterization and in-vitro dissolution study

The aim of this present work was to improve the dissolution profile of Albendazole (ABZ) using solid dispersions technique with nicotinamide (NIC) as the carrier, in different ratios of 1:0.5, 1:1, 1:2, 1:2.5 (coded as SD1, SD2, SD3, SD4) by the kneading method. For the purpose of comparison, another formulation was prepared by the method of physical mixture with the drug and carrier weight ratio of 1:2.5 (PM).The prepared solid dispersions (SDs) were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), powder X4ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) in order to ascertain any physicochemical interactions between the drug and carrier that could affect the dissolution profile of the drug. The dissolution studies were conducted for pure ABZ and all the formulated solid dispersions. FTIR studies indicated the presence of drug4carrier hydrogen bonding that can reduce drug recrystalisation. XRD studies showed the reduction of crystallite size with an increased carrier material. DSC studies indicated a possible physical interaction between ABZ and NIC or a complex formation for better solubilization. All the solid dispersions prepared by kneading method showed an enhanced dissolution profile of Albendazole, as compared to that of pure drug alone, concentration dependently. The physical mixture showed the highest dissolution improvement, a 7.76 fold increase in cumulative dissolution profile than that of pure Albendazole.