In vitro Quality Assessment and Antibacterial Efficacy of Ciprofloxacin Tablets from Different Pharmaceutical Companies in Community Pharmacies in Iraq

Introduction: Bioequivalence and bioavailability of antimicrobial drugs are considered as a critical issue in treatment of infectious diseases. Recently, some variations have been detected in clinical response to some antimicrobial agents. Ciprofloxacin is one of broad spectrum bactericidal agent that has been used widely in community which motivate us to assess its quality and quantity within available brands. Methods: Ciprofloxacin tablets from brand company (A) and other generic companies (B, C and D) have been selected, a standard powder in specific amount was dissolved and injected directly into HPLC to interpolate with the quantity of ciprofloxacin from each company tablet. In vitro dissolution rate was evaluated in every sample by calculating the difference and similarity factors. Antimicrobial effect was evaluated by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method for reference strains of low to high level quinolone resistant bacteria. Results: Ciprofloxacin content was approved within accepted range for all companies except D that exceed the rang value. The dissolution testing was very rapid for A and B (>85%) within 15 minutes, while for D was <80% during the first 30 minutes. MIC for 24 hours of 0.128-500mg/L ciprofloxacin for all strains showed better results seen in A and B than D. Conclusion: Ciprofloxacin tablet of A, B and C companies were approved under the light of the quality test and antibacterial efficacy in comparison with D company, that urge for continuous monitoring and evaluation the generic drugs to avoid drug usefulness and antibiotic resistance. © 2022 American Institute of Physics Inc.. All rights reserved