Formulation and In Vitro Evaluation of Sunflower Oil Entrapped within Buoyant Beads of Furosemide

The purpose of the present study was to develop buoyant beads for the intragastric delivery of furosemide in order to evaluate the effect of incorporated sunflower oil on physiochemical properties of alginate beads. Sunflower oil entrapped buoyant alginate beads of furosemide were prepared by the emulsion-gelation technique. During the preparation of various batches of beads, the ratio of sunflower oil to water (v/v), the ratio of drug to polymer (w/w), were kept as variables at two levels; either high or low. Smooth, spherical beads with nominal weight variation were obtained. All batches of beads floated for 24 hours with a lag time of 5–10 min. The release of drug followed for 5 hours. Higuchi and first order kinetic modeling indicated a diffusion-controlled release of drug from the beads. The study also demonstrated the influence of sunflower oil on drug entrapment (81–95%) and in vitro release. A higher level of oil increased drug entrapment efficiency but retarded drug release rate as compared to a lower level of oil containing beads.