A process and pharmaceutical composition containing simethicone and magnesium carbonate allows a higher production rate of simethicone containing tablets and a more consistent end product tablet. The magnesium carbonate prevents sticking of simethicone to tablet compressing apparatuses, and may also prevent sticking of other excipients to tablet compressing apparatuses.

Description of the Invention

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to pharmaceutical tablets, and in particular to pharmaceutical tablets containing simethicone in a therapeutically effective amount.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Simethicone is a liquid, oily composition. Simethicone comprises liquid methylsiloxane polymers containing a small amount of silica. Since approximately 1960, it has been used as an anti-gas and antiflatulent agent in pharmaceutical compositions. It was approved as being safe and effective for use as an anti-gas and antiflatulent by the FDA in approximately 1974. Since then, it has been widely used in a variety of pharmaceutical formulations as an anti-gas or antiflatulent agent.

In addition to being available as a liquid, simethicone has been available in powder form since approximately 1990. To create a powder, the simethicone is absorbed into maltodextrin particles, preferably agglomerated maltodextrin. (See U.S. Pat. No. 5,073,384). This so-called "granular simethicone" is especially recommended for use in tablet or other solid dosage formulations containing simethicone.

However, even powdered or granular simethicone tends to be somewhat oily to the touch, and not truly freeflowing. This causes difficulties in producing tablets or other solid dosage compositions containing simethicone.

To overcome this residual oiliness, the manufacturer of granular simethicone recommends compounding it with tribasic calcium phosphate, a well known filler/binder in directly compressible tablets. However, a known drawback of tribasic calcium phosphate is its high tendency to adhere to dies and punches. This is usually overcome by employing higher concentrations of lubricant or anti-adherent in the composition.

We have found it very difficult to compound a tablet using granular simethicone, tribasic calcium phosphate and lubricant. Tablets simply cannot be pressed fast enough. At relatively low speeds, tablets can be readily made without sticking to dies and punches. However at higher speeds, die and punch sticking becomes noticeable to an unacceptable degree. Portions of tablets will stick to the dies and punches of tablet compressing machines. During compression, the punch squeezes simethicone from the solid material. While tablets can be pressed generally successfully at slower speeds, this is not true at production speeds. On a production press (2000-3000 tablets per minute), portions of the tablet will stick to portions of the machine resulting in an end product that is inconsistent and unacceptable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

We have surprisingly found that it is possible to achieve higher production rates of granular simethicone-containing tablets by using magnesium carbonate as a processing aid. Magnesium carbonate facilitates a more consistent product quality, because portions of tablets will not stick to the dies and punches of the tablet compressing machines, and makes it unnecessary to use tricalcium phosphate or dibasic calcium. We have also found, surprisingly, that unlike many compounds which are capable of functioning as an antacid, magnesium carbonate does not adversely interfere with the effectiveness of the simethicone, even after the product has been stored for a period of time.

Another advantage of using magnesium carbonate is that the resulting tablets have greater hardness and/or structural strength than those made with a similar amount of tribasic calcium phosphate.

These and other features, advantages, and objects of the present invention will be further understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art by reference to the following specification and claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The tablet of the preferred embodiment contains a pharmaceutically effective amount of simethicone and an amount of magnesium carbonate that is effective at eliminating the sticking of simethicone and other excipients and/or actives to the dies and punches of tablet compressing machines. Preferably, the tablet is substantially free of either tricalcium phosphate or dicalcium phosphate. Simethicone may be administered to humans in a daily dosage regimen of up to 500 mg/day. The range of simethicone contained in each tablet is preferably from about 20 mg to about 250 mg, while the more preferred amount of simethicone per tablet is about 40 mg to about 125 mg. The weight ratio of magnesium carbonate to simethicone preferably falls with in the range of from about 90:125 to about 115:125. The total tablet weight may be from about 500 mg to about 1500 mg, and the preferred total tablet weight is from about 750 mg to about 1000 mg.

In order for a compound to be successful as an oil absorbent for simethicone it must do three things: 1) it must promote the tablet forming characteristics of the simethicone containing granulation; 2) it must not interfere with the effectiveness of the simethicone as demonstrated by the U.S.P. simethicone foam break test; and 3) there are several agents which satisfy 2) in fresh tablets but the agent must continue to satisfy condition #2 for the life of the product.

As indicated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,396,604, compounds which act as antacids interfere, over time, with the effectiveness of simethicone. While magnesium carbonate has previously been used with simethicone as an antacid ingredient, it has not heretofore been used with granular simethicone as an absorbent processing aid. Nor has it been recognized that magnesium carbonate, unlike other antacid materials, does not significantly interfere with the effectiveness of simethicone, even over time. For example, the defoaming activity of simethicone in an antidiarrheal/simethicone containing chewable tablet in an accelerated stability test at 40.degree. C. and at 75% relative humidity yields results of an 11 second defoaming activity at 1 month, a 12 second defoaming activity at 2 months and a 10 second defoaming activity at 3 months. A further example of the same accelerated stability test using the same simethicone containing tablets with a temperature of 25.degree. C. and a relative humidity at 60% yields defoaming activity of the simethicone at 3 months of 10 seconds and at 6 months a defoaming activity of 11 seconds.

Various pharmaceutical actives and tablet excipients may also be combined into the tablet mixture, prior to compression, such as by using rotating shell blenders. Examples of such blenders include double-cone and twin shell blenders.

Examples of types of tablet excipients include, but are not limited to, fillers, binders, diluents, processing aids, e.g. glidants, granulating agents, etc. Specific examples include, without limitation, microcrystalline cellulose, lactose, starch, pregelatinized starch, sucrose, dextrose, corn syrup solids, stearic acid, magnesium stearate, etc.

Preferably, the tablet is substantially free of tricalcium phosphate or dicalcium phosphate. The term "substantially free" is intended to allow for the presence of some dicalcium phosphate or tricalcium phosphate, but not in an amount sufficient to cause production problems such as material sticking to the tablet press dies and punches.

Other pharmaceutical actives may also be incorporated into the tablet. Examples of such pharmaceutical actives include, but are not limited to antidiarrheals, such as attapulgite, loperamide hydrochloride, diphenoxylate hydrochloride, polycarbophil and activated charcoal; and antacids, such as aluminum hydroxide, bismuth subcarbonate, magnesium carbonate-aluminum hydroxide coprecipitate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium citrate, calcium carbonate, magnesium trisilicate and magnesium hydroxide.

The preferred form of magnesium carbonate is as an impalpable powder. An impalpable powder is a powder that is so finely divided that no grains or grit can be felt by touch. An advantage of using magnesium carbonate as a processing aid is that magnesium carbonate is an efficient absorbent. Less amounts of magnesium carbonate may be used as an absorbent, than amounts of conventional absorbing agents, allowing a smaller, more desirable tablet size. Additionally, as a finely divided powder, the magnesium carbonate will thus have the greater coating/drying properties per unit weight than it would as a coarse powder. The particle size range of the magnesium carbonate is from about 1 microns to about 34 microns. The surface area range of the magnesium carbonate particles is from about 3 to about 80 m.sup.2/gram, more preferably the surface area range of the magnesium carbonate particles is about 40.5 m.sup.2/g.

The preferred form of simethicone is the so-called granular simethicone, where simethicone is absorbed onto or into a carrier, preferably maltodextrin. The term granular simethicone as used herein is intended to encompass not only simethicone adsorbed onto maltodextrin, but also simethicone adsorbed onto or into solid carriers, where the resulting granules are, like simethicone adsorbed onto maltodextrin, still oily to the touch. Granular simethicone is available at 30% and 40% simethicone levels.

A preferred form of granular simethicone is a mixture of simethicone and maltodextrin that is agglomerated to form a uniform, poorly flowing, granular combinate containing from about 10 to about 50 percent simethicone and 90 to about 50 percent maltodextrin by weight, and more preferably from about 20 to about 40 percent simethicone and from about 80 to 60 percent maltodextrin by weight.

Granular simethicone per se is neither free flowing nor compressible into tablets. The use of magnesium carbonate in combination with granular simethicone makes granular simethicone both free flowing and readily compressible into tablets.

The granular-simethicone and the magnesium carbonate may be blended in a twin shell blender to yield a gross/coarse mixing of the granular simethicone with the magnesium carbonate. Preferably, the coarse mixture is then cycled through an oscillating granulator, whereby the surface oil on the maltodextrin may be adequately adsorbed by the magnesium carbonate. The ratio of magnesium carbonate to simethicone in the granular simethicone is preferably selected to allow excess oil on the surface of the simethicone granules to be adsorbed onto the magnesium carbonate to overcome the poor flow and poor compressibility properties of the granular simethicone. A suitable weight ratio of magnesium carbonate to the simethicone in the granular simethicone is from about 90:125 to about 115:125. Although higher amounts of magnesium carbonate could be used, there is no reason to do so for processing purposes, once the excess oil has been adequately adsorbed. However, one might do so for other reasons.
 

Claim 1 of 30 Claims

1. A pharmaceutical composition comprising granular simethicone blended with a processing aid amount of magnesium carbonate in which the ratio of the magnesium carbonate to simethicone contained in the granular simethicone is from about 90:125 to about 115:125.

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