A COMPARISON OF THE GASTRIC RETENTION OF ALGINATE CONTAINING TABLET FORMULATIONS WITH AND WITHOUT THE INCLUSION OF EXCIPIENT CALCIUM-IONS

Gamma scintigraphy has been used to monitor the gastric residence of t abletted alginate preparations. It was found that a new formulation of Gaviscon tablets containing calcium carbonate as an excipient formed a raft which persisted in the stomach for approx. 2 h. In contrast, th e raft formed from Gastrocote tablets readily dispersed and emptied wi th the food contents of the stomach. In vitro experiments illustrated a greater raft breaking strength for the 'new' Gaviscon tablets but ra ft thickness and time of raft formation were similar for both preparat ions. The study suggests that new Gaviscon tablets may display superio r anti-reflux activity and that the ability to form a strong persisten t raft may be influenced by the ion content of the formulation.