Application of Indomethacin in Medicine and Pharmacy

Indomethacin, a non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), has been used in different spheres of medicine since the 1960s. It is successfully administered as an anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving medication in rheumatoid and other diseases. According to recent research, indomethacin may become a promising drug enhancing endogenous remyelination in patients with multiple sclerosis. Also, indomethacin affects cell proliferation and invasion, thus it is used to manage pancreatic cancer in patients with hyperglycemia. In addition, indomethacin can inhibit protein synthesis in colorectal carcinoma and other types of cancer cells. The article reviews modern indomethacin medications and the different dosage forms on the Russian pharmaceutical market. Indomethacin poor water solubility is one of the reasons for decreasing its biopharmaceutical characteristics. According to the conducted research, a prospective way to improve indomethacin solubility and bioavailability is the Solid Dispersion (SD) method. SDs are bi- or multicomponent systems consisting of the drug and the carrier. They are a highly dispersed solid phase of the drug or molecular-dispersed solid solutions with a partial formation of a variable composition complex and a carrier. The article provides a brief overview on different aspects of obtaining, investigating, and applying indomethacin SDs with various polymers. © 2018 Izdatel'stvo Meditsina. All rights reserved.