Praziquantel chewable gels as a new pediatric dosage form

GONZALEZ, M.A.; RAMIREZ RIGO, M.V.; GONZALEZ VIDAL, N. L.

Córdoba (formato virtual)

Congreso; 6ta Reunión Internacional de Ciencias Farmacéuticas - RICiFa 2020+1; 2021

Universidad Nacional de Córdoba

Chewable gums have important advantages over conventional pharmaceutical forms, both solid andliquid, since they remain solid during storage but become liquid within a few minutes ofadministration, leading to a fast drug release. The aim of this work was to develop chewable gums ofPraziquantel (PZQ), as an alternative to tablets, which currently constitutes the only available, but notoptimal, dosage form for pediatric patients.The chewing gels were prepared by a molding methodology, varying both the percentage of gelatinand the dose of PZQ, which was incorporated as nanocomposite microparticles previously dispersedin water. The formulations were characterized in terms of moisture content, water activity, pH,texture, disintegration time, and drug content.The obtained formulations showed similar moisture content, water activity and pH results. Withregard to texture parameters, it was observed that gelatin content affects hardness, springiness andgumminess. Disintegration results showed a close relationship with hardness, and therefore, with theamount of gelatin added, with complete disintegration times between 15 and 24 minutes. Finally,regarding to drug content, the results (91.6-97.5 %; RSD 4.1%) indicated that there was no significantloss of PZQ during the production processes and that the variability was acceptable.In conclusion, a new dosage form containing PZQ were obtained through a simple and low-costmethodology. These chewable gels could be an interesting alternative to fill therapeutic gaps in thetreatment of pediatrics patients.