Oral Mucoadhesive Buccal Film of Ciprofloxacin for Periodontitis: Preparation and Characterization

Purpose: To prepare and characterise ciprofloxacin mucoadhesive buccal films for localised, improved drug delivery in periodontitis. Methods: Ciprofloxacin-loaded buccal films containing 50 mg ciprofloxacin were prepared mucoadhesive polymers sodium cellulose (SCMC) and sodium alginate, using a solvent evaporation method. The films were evaluated in terms of thickness, weight, folding endurance, surface pH, drug content, swelling, mucoadhesive properties, release characteristics, and in vivo anti-periodontitis activity, using ampicillin as the standard. Results: The buccal films showed good drug loading (94.50 ± 0.04 to 99.69 ± 0.21 %) and significant mucoadhesion in terms of in vitro residence time, as well as significant swelling (38.20 ± 1.62 to 54.42 ± 2.32 %). In addition to the good physicochemical properties of the films, ex vivo drug release was high (83.22 ± 1.42 to 90.24 ± 2.01 after 12 h. The films displayed potent anti-periodontitis activity, as indicated by a significant reduction in the bacterial count in a periodontitis model. The samples treated with BFC4 formulation (containing 3:1 SCMC and sodium alginate) exhibited the lowest growth of colonies (57 ± 2.02 CFU/mL) compared with those treated with the BFC3 formulation (69 ± 2.41 CFU/mL) and the standard (80 ± 5.22 CFU/mL). Conclusion: Formulation BFC4 has suitable physicochemical, drug-release, and anti-periodontitis activity for buccal administration.