In this focused progress review, the recent developments and trends of hydrogel‐forming microneedles (HFMs) and potential future directions are presented. Previously, microneedles (solid, hollow, coated, and dissolving microneedles) have primarily been used to enhance the effectiveness of transdermal drug delivery to facilitate a wide range of applications such as vaccinations and antibiotic delivery. However, the recent trend in microneedle development has resulted in microneedles formed from hydrogels which have the ability to offer transdermal drug delivery and, due to the hydrogel swelling nature, passively extract interstitial fluid from the skin, meaning they have the potential to be used for biocompatible minimally invasive monitoring devices. Thus, in this review, these recent trends are highlighted, which consolidate microneedle design considerations, hydrogel formulations, fabrication processes, applications of HFMs and the potential future opportunities for utilizing HFMs for personalized healthcare monitoring and treatment.

Front Cover: Hydrogel‐forming microneedles have been primarily utilized for the enhancement of transdermal drug delivery and extraction of interstitial fluid. Applications including treatments for skin cancer and wound healing have been reported. Current applications, hydrogel materials, and potential future directions have been reported in the review article by Joseph G. Turner, Leah R. White, Pedro Estrela, and Hannah S. Leese in the article 2000307. Image Credit: Joseph G. Turner.

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