Development and characterization of nitroglycerine buccal oral films for rapid drug delivery

Buccal drug delivery is an attractive alternative to conventional oral dosage forms, which allows the administration of drugs through the vascularised mucosa of the oral cavity, potentially minimising exposure to gastrointestinal degradation and hepatic first-pass metabolism. In the present work, nitroglycerine-loaded buccal oral films were prepared by the solvent casting method and were evaluated for their physicochemical and mechanical properties. The main film-forming polymer used was hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) 50 cps, and glycerol was used as a plasticiser. The prepared films were evaluated for appearance, weight variation, thickness, folding endurance, disintegration time and surface pH. The resulting films were homogeneous and transparent. Mean film weights for the formulations F1-F3 ranged from 71.6 to 73.0 mg, and the film thicknesses were from 0.45 to 0.63 mm.