Tiny Needles Deliver the Drugs
Engineers at Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a way to get drugs that normally cannot be delivered through the skin to do just that.
The key is to
attach the drugs to an array of small needles or microneedles that punch small
holes in the skin. The stainless-steel microneedles are
620-microns long.
Tests showed drugs pass through the small holes
for about 48 hr, then the body’s healing processes
seal the punctures. According to researchers, microneedles
offer several advantages in drug delivery.
They keep the amount of drug in patients’ bloodstream
at proper or therapeutic levels using lower
doses. And because lower doses are used, the liver
doesn’t have as much substance to metabolize into
potentially harmful compounds.
Make Contact
Georgia Institute of Technology, www.gatech.edu