Release profile of trazodone hydrochloride in transdermal formulations for use in cats: a comparative study.

• Grant number: 24/06884-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2024
• End date: September 30, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Pharmacy
• Principal Investigator: Gisele Mara Silva Gonçalves
• Grantee: Bianca Egea Villalba
• Host Institution: Escola de Ciências da Vida (ECV). Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas (PUC-CAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Introduction. Trazodone hydrochloride is a drug indicated in human health for the treatment of depression with or without episodes of anxiety. In veterinary medicine, there are reports of its off-label use for the sedation of felines (cats) as a pre-care procedure. Veterinarians resort to this therapeutic resource because cats are patients who are easily stressed by simple transport to the veterinary clinic and handling by the staff. For these situations, the use of sedatives before veterinary visits can be recommended. The sedatives used are generally pharmaceutical specialities for human use, presented in tablet form and therefore administered orally. There are previous studies in the literature on the use of oral gabapentin and trazodone hydrochloride in cats. Transdermals for this purpose are available from pharmacies on prescription. Objective. The aim is to carry out a comparative study of the release profile of trazodone hydrochloride from a commercial transdermal preparation and one developed by the research team for use in cats. Method. Experimental study in vitro. A formulation will be proposed by the researcher and evaluated in comparison with one obtained from a commercial base. The release profile of trazodone hydrochloride will be assessed in vitro, taking into account the physiological characteristics of cats. The data obtained will be subjected to statistical analysis. Contribution. The aim of this research is to establish a transdermal formulation for trazodone hydrochloride and to analyse its release profile considering its use in veterinary medicine in cats. In this way, the aim is to create a product that has the potential to sedate the animal (patient) prior to a veterinary consultation.