OBJECTIVE: Ibuprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, is poorly soluble leading to its slow systemic absorption. This study aimed to optimize the formulation of an ibuprofen hydrogel-based matrix tablet to improve its dissolution for better oral bioavailability.

METHODS: Raw material of ibuprofen was subjected to quality control test and compatibility test with the excipients. Six trial formulations were performed, with polyethylene glycol (PEG) 6000 as the matrix for the first three trial formulations and carbopol for the remaining trial formulations. Finished product quality control (FPQC) tests were conducted to choose the best formulations to be compared against the marketed products using comparative dissolution and stability studies.

RESULTS: Among the trial formulations, Formulation 3 and Formulation 4 displayed highly satisfactory results from FPQC. The results of disintegration tests, comparative dissolution, and stability studies suggested carbopol as the better polymer over PEG 6000 which made Formulation 4 as the best.

CONCLUSION: Based on the percent drug release and similarity factor, it was concluded that the formulation optimized in this study was considered to be similar with the standard liquigel.