The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 280 No 7490 p207
23 February 2008

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Transdermal delivery by microneedle

Microneedle arrays allow transdermal delivery of hydrophilic drug molecules to humans, a proof of concept study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences demonstrates (2008;105:2058).

Delivery of naltrexone to six participants achieved steady-state plasma concentrations (within two hours and lasting for 48 hours) when skin had been treated with patches containing 50 microneedles 620µm long and 160µm wide. Application without microneedle treatment led to undetectable drug plasma levels in control subjects.

An additional study in 10 patients suggested that the microneedles caused little to no skin irritation.