A New In-Situ Gel Formulation of Itraconazole for Vaginal Administration

In this paper, mucoadhesive in-situ gel with poloxamer and hydroxypropylmethylcellulose formulations of itraconazole were prepared for vaginal application. In addition, rheological, mechanical and mucoadhesive properties and syringeability of the formulations were characterized. The mixtures of Poloxamer 407 and 188 with two different types of hydroxypropylmethylcellulose were used as polymers for gel formulations. Flow rheometry studies and oscillatory analysis of each formulation were performed at 20 ̊C ± 0.1 ̊C and 37 ̊C ± 0.1 ̊C. All formulations exhibited pseudoplastic flow and typical gel-type mechanical spectra (G′ > G′′) after the determined frequency value at 37 ̊C. Texture profile analysis presented that F3 formulation containing 20% poloxamer 407, 10% poloxamer 188 and 0.5% hydroxypropylmethylcellulose appeared to offer more suitable mechanical and mucoadhesive performance. Using different hydroxypropylmethylcellulose type in formulations didn’t significantly change syringeability values. The evaluation of the entire candidate formulations indicated that vaginal formulation of itraconazole will be an alternative for the treatment of vaginal candidiasis with suitable textural and rheological properties. Our results showed that the developed formulations were found worthy of further studies.