Mediterranean Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Paracetamol is one of the most found over the counter drugs worldwide. It is widely used as an analgesic and antipyretic drug. Many commercial types of paracetamol tablets are available under different brand names in the Libyan drug market. The present study was conducted to evaluate post-marketing quality parameters for three brands of paracetamol tablets marketed in Libya. All three brands were evaluated for weight variation, hardness, friability, disintegration time and uniformity of content following British pharmacopeia guidelines. The outcomes of this study showed all tested brands complied with the British pharmacopeia specifications for the weight variation test, friability test (0.05-0.17%), and hardness test (171.3- 197.6 N). In addition, two brands passed the British pharmacopeia requirements for the disintegration time test, whereas one brand exceeded the allowed disintegration time by about five minutes. Furthermore, high performance liquid chromatography was used to determine paracetamol content. Although the average amount of paracetamol drug available in these brands is not very close to 100%, where one brand achieved the lowest value (438.1 mg), the loaded dose of paracetamol in selected tablets in the three brands was within the British pharmacopeia standard specifications for the uniformity content test. Therefore, it can be concluded that almost all the three tested brands of paracetamol tablets that are available in the Libyan drug market meet the British pharmacopeia specification for quality control analysis.