| Submission to first decision
(The average time from manuscript submission to desk rejection, direct rejection/acceptance or assignment to the first editor) Note: For manuscripts that fully comply with the journal template. However, this timeframe does not apply to manuscripts with formatting or guideline deficiencies. If a manuscript is returned to the authors for corrections, the administrative review process will restart from the re-submission date. |
3 weeks |
|---|---|
| Submission to decision after review (For papers that are sent to review, the average time from submission to receipt of first editor decision) | 6 weeks |
| Submission to final decision (The average time from manuscript submission to the final editorial decision) | 16 weeks |
| Submission to publication (The average time from acceptance to publication. Manuscript published in early view are also included in this calculation) | 24 weeks |
ACTA Pharmaceutica Sciencia
2026 , Vol 64 , Num 4
Design and optimization of HPMC/EC-diclofenac sodium transdermal patches
1 Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Drug Delivery Research Laboratory, Hisar, IndiaDOI : 10.23893/1307-2080.APS64032 Viewed : 65 - Downloaded : 34 Matrix type transdermal patch of diclofenac sodium was prepared using hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC) and ethylcellulose (EC) as polymers. The preparation of patches was optimized employing 2-factor, 3-level Central Composite Design (CCD) keeping concentration of HPMC and polyethylene glycol-400 (PEG-400) as independent variables whereas drug content and drug release were set as dependent variables. The preparation of patch was characterized by FT-IR, DSC, XRD and SEM studies. The optimized batch was evaluated for drug content, in vitro drug release and ex vivo drug permeation study. In vitro drug release study of optimized batch revealed that 43.28% drug released in 12 hours, thus showing sustained release behaviour and followed Korsemeyer-Peppas release kinetics. However, ex vivo drug permeation study of optimized batch was carried out using pig ear skin displayed 20.5% drug permeated at a flux rate of 1.22 µg/cm²/h following Higuchi model of release kinetics. Keywords : transdermal patches, diclofenac sodium, design of experiment, HPMC, ethylcellulose