Volumetric printing and non-destructive drug quantification of water-soluble supramolecular hydrogels.

Vat photopolymerisation 3D printing is being actively explored for manufacturing personalised medicines due to its high dimensional accuracy and lack of heat application. However, several challenges have hindered its clinical translation, including the inadequate printing speeds, the lack of resins that give soluble matrices, and the need for non-destructive quality control measures. In this study, for the first time, a rapid approach to producing water-soluble vat photopolymerised matrices and a means of non-destructively verifying their drug content were investigated.

Fabrication of 3D printed mutable drug delivery devices: a comparative study of volumetric and digital light processing printing.

Mutable devices and dosage forms have the capacity to dynamically transform dimensionally, morphologically and mechanically upon exposure to non-mechanical external triggers. By leveraging these controllable transformations, these systems can be used as minimally invasive alternatives to implants and residence devices, foregoing the need for complex surgeries or endoscopies. 4D printing, the fabrication of 3D-printed structures that evolve their shape, properties, or functionality in response to stimuli over time, allows the production of such devices.

Emotional behavioral outcomes of children with unilateral and mild hearing loss.

Background: Deaf and hard-of hearing (DHH) children often experience emotional/behavioral difficulties. The impact of unilateral/mild hearing loss (HL) on children's emotion and behavior are unclear. We aimed to describe emotional/behavioral, health related quality-of-life (HRQoL) and parent psychological distress outcomes of school-age children with unilateral/mild HL, compared to children with moderate to profound HL, and in relation to population norms; and identify predictive factors of emotional/behavioral difficulties.

Supramolecular chemistry enables vat photopolymerization 3D printing of novel water-soluble tablets.

Vat photopolymerization has garnered interest from pharmaceutical researchers for the fabrication of personalised medicines, especially for drugs that require high precision dosing or are heat labile. However, the 3D printed structures created thus far have been insoluble, limiting printable dosage forms to sustained-release systems or drug-eluting medical devices which do not require dissolution of the printed matrix. Resins that produce water-soluble structures will enable more versatile drug release profiles and expand potential applications.

A case study on decentralized manufacturing of 3D printed medicines.

Pharmaceutical 3D printing (3DP) is one of the emerging enabling technologies of personalised medicines as it affords the ability to fabricate highly versatile dosage forms. In the past 2 years, national medicines regulatory authorities have held consultations with external stakeholders to adapt regulatory frameworks to embrace point-of-care manufacturing. The proposed concept of decentralized manufacturing (DM) involves the provision of feedstock intermediates (pharma-inks) prepared by pharmaceutical companies to DM sites for manufacturing into the final medicine.

Predicting pharmaceutical inkjet printing outcomes using machine learning.

Inkjet printing has been extensively explored in recent years to produce personalised medicines due to its low cost and versatility. Pharmaceutical applications have ranged from orodispersible films to complex polydrug implants. However, the multi-factorial nature of the inkjet printing process makes formulation (e.

Advancing non-destructive analysis of 3D printed medicines.

Pharmaceutical 3D printing (3DP) has attracted significant interest over the past decade for its ability to produce personalised medicines on demand. However, current quality control (QC) requirements for traditional large-scale pharmaceutical manufacturing are irreconcilable with the production offered by 3DP. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) have recently published documents supporting the implementation of 3DP for point-of-care (PoC) manufacturing along with regulatory hurdles.

Simultaneous fabrication of multiple tablets within seconds using tomographic volumetric 3D printing.

3D printing is driving a shift in patient care away from a generalised model and towards personalised treatments. To complement fast-paced clinical environments, 3D printing technologies must provide sufficiently high throughputs for them to be feasibly implemented. Volumetric printing is an emerging 3D printing technology that affords such speeds, being capable of producing entire objects within seconds.

Inkjet drug printing onto contact lenses: Deposition optimisation and non-invasive dose verification.

Inkjet printing has the potential to advance the treatment of eye diseases by printing drugs on demand onto contact lenses for localised delivery and personalised dosing, while near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy can further be used as a quality control method for quantifying the drug but has yet to be demonstrated with contact lenses. In this study, a glaucoma therapy drug, timolol maleate, was successfully printed onto contact lenses using a modified commercial inkjet printer. The drug-loaded ink prepared for the printer was designed to match the properties of commercial ink, whilst having maximal drug loading and avoiding ocular inflammation.

Integrating pressure sensor control into semi-solid extrusion 3D printing to optimize medicine manufacturing.

Semi-solid extrusion (SSE) is a three-dimensional printing (3DP) process that involves the extrusion of a gel or paste-like material via a syringe-based printhead to create the desired object. In pharmaceuticals, SSE 3DP has already been used to manufacture formulations for human clinical studies. To further support its clinical adoption, the use of a pressure sensor may provide information on the printability of the feedstock material in situ and under the exact printing conditions for quality control purposes.

To infinity and beyond: Strategies for fabricating medicines in outer space.

Recent advancements in next generation spacecrafts have reignited public excitement over life beyond Earth. However, to safeguard the health and safety of humans in the hostile environment of space, innovation in pharmaceutical manufacturing and drug delivery deserves urgent attention. In this review/commentary, the current state of medicines provision in space is explored, accompanied by a forward look on the future of pharmaceutical manufacturing in outer space.

Psychotropic medication prescribing trends in a developmental-behavioural clinic during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aim: Psychotropic medication prescribing among children with developmental-behavioural and mental health problems appears to be rising globally. We aim to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and rapid introduction of telehealth consultations on the prescribing trends and medication change in a large paediatric public hospital developmental-behavioural outpatient service.

Methods: Data for developmental-behavioural outpatient encounters from 23 March 2019 to 22 March 2021 were extracted from the electronic medical record; representing the 12 months following the conversion to telehealth consultations during the onset of COVID-19 pandemic and the 12 months prior to this change.

Connected healthcare: Improving patient care using digital health technologies.

Now more than ever, traditional healthcare models are being overhauled with digital technologies of Healthcare 4.0 increasingly adopted. Worldwide, digital devices are improving every stage of the patient care pathway.

Machine learning predicts 3D printing performance of over 900 drug delivery systems.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) is a transformative technology that is advancing pharmaceutical research by producing personalized drug products. However, advances made via 3DP have been slow due to the lengthy trial-and-error approach in optimization. Artificial intelligence (AI) is a technology that could revolutionize pharmaceutical 3DP through analyzing large datasets.

Disrupting 3D printing of medicines with machine learning.

3D printing (3DP) is a progressive technology capable of transforming pharmaceutical development. However, despite its promising advantages, its transition into clinical settings remains slow. To make the vital leap to mainstream clinical practice and improve patient care, 3DP must harness modern technologies.

Optical biosensors - Illuminating the path to personalized drug dosing.

Optical biosensors are low-cost, sensitive and portable devices that are poised to revolutionize the medical industry. Healthcare monitoring has already been transformed by such devices, with notable recent applications including heart rate monitoring in smartwatches and COVID-19 lateral flow diagnostic test kits. The commercial success and impact of existing optical sensors has galvanized research in expanding its application in numerous disciplines.

Harnessing artificial intelligence for the next generation of 3D printed medicines.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is redefining how we exist in the world. In almost every sector of society, AI is performing tasks with super-human speed and intellect; from the prediction of stock market trends to driverless vehicles, diagnosis of disease, and robotic surgery. Despite this growing success, the pharmaceutical field is yet to truly harness AI.

3D printed tacrolimus suppositories for the treatment of ulcerative colitis.

Ulcerative colitis is a global health problem, affecting millions of individuals worldwide. As an inflammatory condition localised in the large intestine, rectal delivery of immunosuppressive therapies such as tacrolimus is a promising strategy to maximise drug concentration at the site of action whilst minimising systemic side effects. Here, for the first time, self-supporting 3D-printed tacrolimus suppositories were prepared without the aid of moulds using a pharmaceutical semi-solid extrusion (SSE) 3D printer.

Electrochemical biosensors: a nexus for precision medicine.

Precision medicine is a field with huge potential for improving a patient's quality of life, wherein therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) can provide actionable insights. More importantly, incorrect drug dose is a common contributor to medical errors. However, current TDM practice is time-consuming and expensive, and requires specialised technicians.

M3DISEEN: A novel machine learning approach for predicting the 3D printability of medicines.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to reshape pharmaceutical formulation development through its ability to analyze and continuously monitor large datasets. Fused deposition modeling (FDM) three-dimensional printing (3DP) has made significant advancements in the field of oral drug delivery with personalized drug-loaded formulations being designed, developed and dispensed for the needs of the patient. The FDM 3DP process begins with the production of drug-loaded filaments by hot melt extrusion (HME), followed by the printing of a drug product using a FDM 3D printer.

3D printed opioid medicines with alcohol-resistant and abuse-deterrent properties.

In the past decade, prescriptions for opioid medicines have been exponentially increasing, instigating opioid abuse as a global health crisis associated with high morbidity and mortality. In particular, diversion from the intended mode of opioid administration, such as injecting and snorting the opioid, is a major problem that contributes to this epidemic. In light of this, novel formulation strategies are needed to support efforts in reducing the prevalence and risks of opioid abuse.

Parental satisfaction and perception of Progress in influencing the Practice of complementary health approaches in children with autism: a cross sectional survey from Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.

Background: Parents' use of complementary health approaches (CHA) for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are common despite the uncertain evidence of its benefit. Parents often adopt CHA due to dissatisfaction with conventional treatment. This study aimed to examine parents' satisfaction with ASD treatment and their perception of progress in their child's development.