Pharmacokinetics of a losartan potassium released from a transdermal therapeutic system for the treatment of hypertension.

Monolithic transdermal therapeutic systems (TTS) were developed for sustained antihypertensive effect of losartan potassium using the polymers Eudragit E 100 and polyvinyl pyrrolidone VA 64. The developed formulations (polymeric films) were evaluated for physical characteristics, ex vivo (histopathology) and in vivo (pharmacokinetic studies). Pharmacokinetic parameters, such as C(max), t(max), and AUC were estimated. The transdermal formulation in the present study was found to enhance the relative bioavailability of losartan potassium by 2.2 times with reference to an oral delivery. The increased bioavailability might be due to elimination of hepatic first pass metabolism. Thus, the transdermal formulation F3E with polymeric composition of Eudragit E 100 and polyvinyl pyrrolidone VA 64 (5:3) was found to provide prolonged steady state concentrations of losartan potassium with minimal fluctuations and improved bioavailability.