Palatable Orally Disintegrating Tablets of Losartan Potassium Developed by Spray-drying Technique and Direct...

Area of Science:

• Pharmaceutical Technology
• Drug Delivery Systems
• Pediatric Medicine

Background:

• Lack of suitable dosage forms hinders pediatric disease treatment.
• Orally disintegrating tablets (ODT) offer a promising alternative for drug administration.
• Losartan potassium (LP) is essential for pediatric hypertension but has a bitter taste, impacting compliance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop palatable ODT incorporating spray-dried powders (SDP) of Losartan potassium (LP).
• To mask the bitter taste of LP for improved pediatric patient compliance.
• To evaluate the physicochemical and palatability properties of the developed ODT.

Main Methods:

• Spray drying of LP with Eudragit® polymers and adjuvants to form SDP.
• Incorporation of SDP into ODT via direct compression.
• Characterization of SDP and ODT for production yield, encapsulation efficiency, mechanical properties, disintegration time, dissolution, and palatability.

Main Results:

• Satisfactory mechanical and pharmaceutical properties were achieved for the ODT.
• The ODT-7SDP formulation, using Eudragit® E PO and colloidal silicon dioxide, demonstrated significantly reduced LP bitterness.
• In vitro dissolution profiles varied among formulations.

Conclusions:

• Spray drying technology effectively masked the bitter taste of LP.
• Developed ODT offer a viable, palatable dosage form for pediatric administration.
• This approach enhances treatment compliance for pediatric hypertension management.