Preparation, Characterization, Swelling Potential, and In-Vitro Evaluation of Sodium Poly(Styrene Sulfonate)-Based Hydrogels for Controlled Delivery of Ketorolac Tromethamine

Abstract

The objective of the current study work was to fabricate sodium poly(styrene sulfonate-co-poly acrylic acid) (SPSPAA) hydrogels by using a free radical co-polymerization method for controlled delivery of ketorolac tromethamine (KT). Polymer (sodium poly(styrene sulfonate) (SPS) polymerized with monomer acrylic acid (AA) in the presence of initiator ammonium peroxodisulfate (APS) and cross-linker N′,N′-Methylene bisacrylamide (MBA). Different combinations of polymer, cross-linker and monomer, were employed for development of polymeric hydrogels. Various studies such as sol-gel, drug loading, dynamic swelling, and drug release studies were carried out to know the sol and gel portion of SPSPAA, swelling behavior of hydrogels at different pH media (1.2 and 7.4), quantification of drug loaded by fabricated hydrogels, and amount release of KT at pH 1.2 and 7.4. Higher dynamic swelling was found at pH 7.4 compared to pH 1.2, and as a result, greater percent release of drug was perceived at pH 7.4. Thermal stability, crystallinity, confirmation of functional groups and development of a new polymeric system, and surface morphology were evaluated via Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Powder X-ray Diffraction (PXRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) respectively. The results showed that the present work could be used as a potential candidate for controlled delivery of KT.