Enhancement of ketoprofen bioavailability by formation of microsponge tablets.

The release of ketoprofen incorporated into modified release ketoprofen microsponge 200 mg tablets and Profenid Retard 200 mg was studied in vitro and in vivo. The formulation containing ketoprofen microsponges yielded good modified release tablets. An in vivo study was designed to evaluate the pharmacokinetic parameters and to compare them with the commercially available ketoprofen retard tablets containing the same amount of the active drug. Commercial ketoprofen retard tablets showed a more rapid absorption rate than modified release tablets and peak levels were reached within almost 3.6 h after administration. However, the new modified release tablets showed a slower absorption rate and peak levels were reached 8 h after administration.