Buccal delivery of thiocolchicoside: in vitro and in vivo permeation studies

Thiocolchicoside, a muscle-relaxant agent, is administered by the oral, intra-muscular and topical route. After oral administration the extent of bioavailability compared with intra-muscular administration is low, due to a first pass effect. In this paper, the delivery of thiocolchicoside through oral mucosa is studied to improve the bioavailability. Thiocolchicoside in vitro permeation through porcine oral mucosa and in vivo buccal transport in humans were investigated. Two dosage forms, a bioadhesive disc and a fast dissolving disc for buccal and sublingual administration of thiocolchicoside, respectively, were designed. The in vitro permeation of thiocolchicoside through porcine buccal mucosa from these dosage forms was evaluated and compared with in vivo absorption. Results from in vitro studies demonstrated that thiocolchicoside is quite permeable across porcine buccal mucosa and that permeation enhancers, such as sodium taurocholate and sodium taurodeoxycholate, were not able to increase its flux. The in vivo thiocolchicoside absorption experiments, in which the drug loss from oral cavity was measured, indicated that both formulations could be useful for therapeutic application. The fast dissolving (sublingual) form resulted in a quick uptake of 0.5 mg of thiocolchicoside within 15 min whereas with the adhesive buccal form the same dose can be absorbed over an extended period of time.