Technological approaches to increase the bioavailability of Ibuprofen

Ibuprofen is a BCS class II drug with poor water solubility and high permeability. The oral bioavailability is limited by the drug dissolution step. This is the reason that high doses of the drug are required in order to reach the therapeutic plasma concentration after oral administration, causing the occurrence of adverse reactions, mostly related to the gastrointestinal tract in the case of Ibuprofen. This necessitates the investigation of various methods to increase the solubility and hence bioavailability of Ibuprofen, thereby also aiming to reduce the dose and side effects. The present review describes the main technologies used to enhance the solubility and thereby reduce the dose included. These technologies include micronization, nanosizing, crystal engineering, solid dispersions, cyclodextrins, solid lipid nanoparticles, microemulsions, self-emulsifying, and self-microemulsifying drug delivery systems, as well as the results obtained by a number of scientists who conducted research on the methods in question.