Formulation and Evaluation of Bilayered Floating Tablets of Aceclofenac

The objective of this study was to create and assess homogeneous bilayered floating tablets of aceclofenac in order to increase the drug's bioavailability and prolong its stomach release. One of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) common side effects is poor solubility and minimal stomach retention, which makes it difficult to treat effectively. As matrix-forming polymers, ten formulations (F1–F10) were made with different amounts of HPMC K15 and additional excipients. Physical properties, buoyancy, in vitro drug release, and kinetic modelling were evaluated for each formulation. With a floating lag time of less than one minute and buoyancy maintained for more than 12 hours, Formulation 5 (F5) showed the most promising findings. With 97.01% of aceclofenac released over 12 hours, it showed a regulated drug release pattern that followed the Korsmeyer-Peppas release model well (R2 = 0.9242). Pre-compression and post-compression values for the optimised formulation F5 were adequate, suggesting good flow characteristics and tablet integrity. FTIR spectroscopy was used to verify the drug-excipient compatibility, guaranteeing stability and the lack of interactions. According to these results, aceclofenac's homogenous bilayered floating tablets, specifically formulation F5, may be able to improve gastric retention time and offer a sustained release profile. This could mean that the medication can be used to treat chronic inflammatory conditions more effectively and with better patient compliance. Keywords: gastric retention, bioavailability, drug excipient compatibility.