Abstract: Aim To study the pharmacokinetics and bioequivalence of nimesulide dispersible tablet and its normal tablet. Methods 20 healthy volunteers were treated with a single oral dose of domesticc nimesulide dispersible tablet or normal tablet (control) in a randomized crossover study and the plasma drug concentration was determined by HPLC. Results The plasma concentration-time curve was fitted to the one-compartment model. The pharmacokinetic parameters obtained were: c_max (3.91 ±0.74) μg ·ml^-1, t_(1/2) β (3.40 ±0.78) h, t_max (3.15 ±0.67) h, AUC_0~24 (31.92 ±6.36) μg·ml·h^-1, there was no significant difference between the active and control groups. The relative bioavailability obtained was (96.43 ±8.41) %.Conclusion The pharmacokinetic profile for the 2 tablets was similar so it may be concluded that they are bioequivalent.

Key words: nimesulide, HPLC, pharmacokinetics, bioavailability