In Vivo Predictive Dissolution Testing of Montelukast Sodium Formulations Administered with Drinks and Soft Foods to Infants

In vitro dissolution testing conditions that reflect and predict in vivo drug product performance are advantageous, especially for the development of paediatric medicines, as clinical testing in this population is hindered by ethical and technical considerations. The aim of this study was to develop an in vivo predictive dissolution test in order to investigate the impact of medicine co-administration with soft food and drinks on the dissolution performance of a poorly soluble compound. Relevant in vitro dissolution conditions simulating the in vivo gastrointestinal environment of infants were used to establish in vitro-in vivo relationships with corresponding in vivo data. Dissolution studies of montelukast formulations were conducted with mini-paddle apparatus on a two-stage approach: infant fasted-state simulated gastric fluid (Pi-FaSSGF; for 1 h) followed by either infant fasted-state or infant fed-state simulated intestinal fluid (FaSSIF-V2 or Pi-FeSSIF, respectively; for 3 h). The dosing scenarios tested reflected in vivo paediatric administration practices: (i.) direct administration of formulation; (ii.) formulation co-administered with vehicles (formula, milk or applesauce). Drug dissolution was significantly affected by co-administration of the formulation with vehicles compared with after direct administration of the formulation. Montelukast dissolution from the granules was significantly higher under fed-state simulated intestinal conditions in comparison with the fasted state and was predictive of the in vivo performance when the granules are co-administered with milk. This study supports the potential utility of the in vitro biorelevant dissolution approach proposed to predict in vivo formulation performance after co-administration with vehicles, in the paediatric population.