Abstract

Trifluoperazine hydrochloride (TFP) microcapsules were prepared by coacervation-phase separation technique using non-aqueous vehicles with ethyl cellulose (EC) as polymer. Coacervation was induced by solvent alteration technique followed by change in temperature. Microcapsules were prepared with different TFP-EC weight ratios. The prepared microcapsules were evaluated for various physico-chemical properties. The in vitro release studies indicated that the amount of drug release was decreasing with the increase in proportion of EC in the microcapsule and it followed a first order kinetics. The pharmacological studies indicated that the microcapsule might even reduce the drug induced extrapyramidal side effects (EPS). The pharmacokinetic studies revealed the maintenance of effective plasma concentration well below the toxic levels. Thus, the results indicated that the TFP loaded microcapsules might be a better alternative over conventional products.