Enhanced Iontophoretic Delivery of Sumatriptan Succinate from Thermosensitive Gel using Chemical Enhancers

The purpose of the present study was to explore the passive and electrically assisted transdermal transport of Sumatriptan succinate (SS) by iontophoresis. For better bioavailability, better patient compliance, and enhanced delivery of SS, an iontophoretic drug delivery system of a thermo sensitive SS gel was formulated using Lutrol F-127. The study was conducted using silver–silver chloride electrodes across hairless pig skin. The effects of pH, pulsed current, polymer concentration, drug concentration, synergistic effect of penetration enhancers on the SS permeation were investigated. Iontophoretic transport of SS was found to increase with increase in the pH of the medium. Viscosity measurements and flux calculations indicated the suitability of the Lutrol gel for transdermal iontophoretic delivery of SS. Anodal pulsed iontophoresis significantly increases the skin permeation of SS at pulsed ratio 1:1 in combination with PEG-400 as penetration enhancers compared with the passive controls