3D printed drug delivery devices: perspectives and technical challenges

Abstract

The technological advancements in the pharmaceutical field are constantly improving and provide various possibilities for meeting the needs of personalized drug therapy. The three-dimensional (3D) printing technology has endless potential in the fabrication of patient-specific drug delivery devices (DDD) and dosage forms as the technological development is progressing. Moreover, the rapidly evolving research on 3D printed DDD has enabled us to determine several challenges related to the manufacturing and marketing of personalized drug delivery systems. Areas covered: In this review, an overview is provided on the relevant accomplishments in the development of 3D printed drug delivery systems, as well as the technical challenges surrounding the 3D printing of personalized drug-loaded medical devices and dosage forms. Furthermore, observations are presented on the future perspectives of pharmaceutical 3D printing. Expert commentary: The 3D printing has enabled the fabrication of prototypes of DDD with varying complexity and shows that customization of drug products is possible. There is potential to improve patient-specific drug therapies of the future using printing technologies. The technological advancements, new scientific concepts, interdisciplinary work and defined regulatory guidelines will continue to support and strengthen the prospects of 3D printing as an option in the manufacture of medical products.

Multifaceted polymeric materials in three‐dimensional processing (3DP) technologies: Current progress and prospects

“…Moreover, parts with high mechanical strength can be fabricated by using SLS technology . Even though SLS is often used with metal powders, polymers like nylon, polyamide (PA) 12, polystyrene, polypropylene, and thermoplastic elastomers are also commercially available …”

“…Three‐dimensional printing technique also gives a unique opportunity to control the material composition and various properties such as electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, reflectivity, magnetic properties, and hardness at various places of the product to fabricate functionally graded materials or composites . Three‐dimensional processing consists of 2 main steps which are repeated to produce a layered 3D structure as it involves a layer of powder being spread onto the build plate with a roller, followed by the binding material being jetted onto a predefined location on the powder layer by movable inkjet printhead(s) and the powder thereafter bound together only in the printed areas . The most commonly used process creates parts by employing a water‐based binder to link the model contour as illustrated in Figure A, thus creating even multicolored parts to melt the powder.…”

“…66,95 Three-dimensional processing consists of 2 main steps which are repeated to produce a layered 3D structure as it involves a layer of powder being spread onto the build plate with a roller, followed by the binding material being jetted onto a predefined location on the powder layer by movable inkjet printhead(s) and the powder thereafter bound together only in the printed areas. 2 The most commonly used process creates parts by employing a water-based binder to link the model contour as illustrated in Figure 3 A, thus creating even multicolored parts to melt the powder. The surrounding loose powder acts as a support material.…”

“…Three‐dimensional printing technologies (or freeform fabrication, rapid prototyping, and digital fabrication) are collectively defined as the layer‐by‐layer fabrication of physical objects from a 3D model obtained from computer‐aided design, computerized tomography, or magnetic resonance imaging scan data as illustrated in Figure . The history of 3DP technologies dated decades back, although the use at the industrial settings has been for over 30 years, covering many processing techniques which employ various printer technologies, different resolutions, speeds, and hundreds of materials .…”

“…14 Even though SLS is often used with metal powders, polymers like nylon, polyamide (PA) 12, polystyrene, polypropylene, and thermoplastic elastomers are also commercially available. 2 The resolution of a SLS printer is usually few tens of micrometers, typically 10 to 15 μm, which is dependent on the focus power of the laser and the particle size of the powders. 15 Alternatively, the process is referred to as selective laser melting, when the feedstock material is a metal alloy.…”