In the present investigation an attempt has been made to study the formulation and evaluation of matrix tablets of indomethacin using mucilage ofHibiscus rosa-sinensis as a release retardant. The mucilage was extracted from the leaves of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis using acetone. The matrix tablets were formulated using different concentrations (0.15, 0.3 and 0.45) of Hibiscus mucilage. The developed formulations of tablets were evaluated for pre-compression and post-compression parameters. The results of pre-compression parameters likebulk density, tapped density, Carr’s index and Hausner’s ratio were found to be within the limits indicating good flow properties of the granules.Swelling index reveals that with increasing mucilage concentration there is increased swelling showing 68% for F3 at the end of 5 hwhere as for F1 and F2 it was around 58.3 % and 66.66 % respectively. In-vitro drug release for F3 formulation was found to be 62.86 % at the end of 8 h. With increase in mucilage concentration the drug release from the matrix tablets got retarded. In-vitro drug release data obtained were fitted to various release models access the possible mechanism of drug release.All the formulations showed matrix (Higuchi Matrix) as a best fit model and the release mechanism was found to be Fickian Difussion. Thus, Matrix tablets of indomethacin formulated by using Hibiscus mucilage as a release retardant could be employed for retardant drug release.
