Assessment of a mathematical model considering the effect of flow rate on in-vitro drug-release from PLGA films

Abstract

Drug-eluting stents implanted in blood vessels are subject to various dynamics of blood flow. In this study, we present the evaluation of a mathematical model considering the effect of flow rate, to simulate the kinetic profiles of drug release (Diclofenac Sodium (DS)) from in-vitro from PLGA films. This model solves a set of non-linear equation for modeling simultaneously the burst, diffusion, swelling and erosion involved in the mechanisms of liberation. The release parameters depending on the flow rate are determined using the corresponding mathematical equations. For the evaluation of the proposed model, test data obtained in our laboratory are used. To quantify DS release from drug-carrier PLGA films, we used the flow-through cell apparatus in a closed-loop. Four flow rate values are applied. For each value, the model-substance liberation kinetics showed an increase in drug released with the flow rate. The simulated release profiles show good agreement with the experimental results. Therefore, the use of this model could provide a practical tool to assess in-vitro drug release profiles from polymer matrices under continuous flow rate constraint, and could help improve the design of drug eluting stents.