In-Situ Gel-Based Nasal Drug Delivery of Oxymetazoline Hydrochloride: A Mucoadhesive Approach

Nasal mucosa has a high blood perfusion rate in the nasal cavity, which increases the drug’s absorption and bioavailability in the systemic circulation compared to other routes. We need to apply a bio-compatible mucoadhesive polymer to increase the retention period of in-situ gel with nasal mucosa. However, the objective of the present study was to formulate and evaluate in-situ nasal gel of oxymetazoline hydrochloride. This drug delivery technology has the potential to bypass the initial metabolism of the medication and thereby enhance its bioavailability. A total 10 in situ nasal gels were created by combining hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC K-100) and xanthan gum in various polymeric ratios. All gel formulations that were produced (F1–F10) had pH values between 5.5±0.008 to 6.0±0.002. The gels’ spreadability ranged from 10.1±0.24 to 6.7±0.67g/cm/sec. All prepared gel compositions were found to have gelling temperature ranged from 33.2±0.41°C to 34.8±0.36°C, gelling time ranged from 4.0±0.41 s to 10.1±0.16 seconds and gel strengths ranging from 51.16±0.66 to 62.14± 0.58. The range of 130.34±0.57 to 211.75±1.35 centipoises was found for the viscosity of the different prepared gels. All manufactured gel formulations were found to have a drug concentration ranging from 97.54±0.43 to 99.68±0.83 percent. Oxymetazoline hydrochloride nasal gels F9 have a 99.98 % drug release rate in their in vitro diffusion drug release. According to the release order kinetics, all of the formulations—from F1 to F10— followed the Higuchi diffusion model, as evidenced by the correlation coefficients R2=0.986 and 0.937, respectively. The drug release investigations conducted in a controlled laboratory environment shown that the formulated substances were capable of releasing the drug for a duration of 10hours. Furthermore, all of the formulations exhibited a consistent adherence to the Higuchi kinetics model. The accelerated stability investigations demonstrated that the gels remained stable throughout the six-month testing period. The Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) tests indicated the absence of any interaction between the medication and polymer. Based on these findings, it can be inferred that in situ nasal gels have the potential to be used as drug delivery systems for oxymetazoline HCl. This can help overcome first-pass metabolism and boost the bioavailability of the drug.