Formulation and Development of Microemulsion Based Gel (Mbg) of Ibuprofen for Topical Drug Delivery

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to formulate an Ibuprofen loaded microemulsion based gel (MBG) for the topical delivery. The oil phase selected for the preparation of stable microemulsion was IsoPropyl Myristate (IPM). Tween-80 and PEG 400 were selected as surfactant and co-surfactant respectively. For the ease of application microemulsion was gelled by using carbopol 940. The optimized MBG was evaluated for pH measurements, spreadability, swelling index study, drug content and in vitro permeation study. The in-vitro skin permeation was carried out in pH 7.4 phosphate buffer on excised mice skin using franz-diffusion cell for 4 h and was compared with a conventional gel formulation. The results showed that release of drug from MBG was found to be 97.78% as compared to 79% from conventional gel formulation. The study also showed flux value 0.453μg/cm2/min for MBG as compared to 0.353 μg/cm2/min which was found in the case of conventional gel. Hence MBG is the promosing alternative for the topical delivery of the drug.