Releasing fast and slow: Non-destructive prediction of density and drug release from SLS 3D printed tablets using NIR spectroscopy.

Selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing is a revolutionary 3D printing technology that has been found capable of creating drug products with varied release profiles by changing the laser scanning speed. Here, SLS 3D printed formulations (printlets) loaded with a narrow therapeutic index drug (theophylline) were produced using SLS 3D printing at varying laser scanning speeds (100-180 mm/s). The use of reflectance Fourier Transform - Near Infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy was evaluated as a non-destructive approach to predicting 3D printed tablet density and drug release at 2 h and 4 h.

Prediction of Solid-State Form of SLS 3D Printed Medicines Using NIR and Raman Spectroscopy.

Selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing is capable of revolutionising pharmaceutical manufacturing, by producing amorphous solid dispersions in a one-step manufacturing process. Here, 3D-printed formulations loaded with a model BCS class II drug (20% / itraconazole) and three grades of hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) polymer (-SSL, -SL and -L) were produced using SLS 3D printing. Interestingly, the polymers with higher molecular weights (HPC-L and -SL) were found to undergo a uniform sintering process, attributed to the better powder flow characteristics, compared with the lower molecular weight grade (HPC-SSL).

Advancing pharmacy and healthcare with virtual digital technologies.

Digitalisation of the healthcare sector promises to revolutionise patient healthcare globally. From the different technologies, virtual tools including artificial intelligence, blockchain, virtual, and augmented reality, to name but a few, are providing significant benefits to patients and the pharmaceutical sector alike, ranging from improving access to clinicians and medicines, as well as improving real-time diagnoses and treatments. Indeed, it is envisioned that such technologies will communicate together in real-time, as well as with their physical counterparts, to create a large-scale, cyber healthcare system.

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.

Translating 3D printed pharmaceuticals: From hype to real-world clinical applications.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a revolutionary technology that is disrupting pharmaceutical development by enabling the production of personalised printlets (3D printed drug products) on demand. By creating small batches of dose flexible medicines, this versatile technology offers significant advantages for clinical practice and drug development, namely the ability to personalise medicines to individual patient needs, as well as expedite drug development timelines within preclinical studies through to first-in-human (FIH) and Phase I/II clinical trials. Despite the widely demonstrated benefits of 3D printing pharmaceuticals, the clinical potential of the technology is yet to be realised.

Stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing of a bladder device for intravesical drug delivery.

Intravesical instillation therapy is an alternative approach to oral medications for the treatment of severe bladder diseases, offering high drug concentrations at the site of action while minimising systemic side effects. However, therapeutic efficacy is often limited because of the short residence time of the drug in the bladder and the need for repeated instillations. This study reports, for the first time, the use of stereolithography (SLA) 3D printing to manufacture novel indwelling bladder devices using an elastic polymer to achieve extended and localised delivery of lidocaine hydrochloride.

Pulmonary Angiopathy in Severe COVID-19: Physiologic, Imaging, and Hematologic Observations.

Clinical and epidemiologic data in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have accrued rapidly since the outbreak, but few address the underlying pathophysiology. To ascertain the physiologic, hematologic, and imaging basis of lung injury in severe COVID-19 pneumonia. Clinical, physiologic, and laboratory data were collated.

3D Printed Tablets (Printlets) with Braille and Moon Patterns for Visually Impaired Patients.

Visual impairment and blindness affects 285 million people worldwide, resulting in a high public health burden. This study reports, for the first time, the use of three-dimensional (3D) printing to create orally disintegrating printlets (ODPs) suited for patients with visual impairment. Printlets were designed with Braille and Moon patterns on their surface, enabling patients to identify medications when taken out of their original packaging.

Non-destructive dose verification of two drugs within 3D printed polyprintlets.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) is a revolutionary technology in pharmaceuticals, enabling the personalisation of flexible-dose drug products and 3D printed polypills (polyprintlets). A major barrier to entry of this technology is the lack of non-destructive quality control methods capable of verifying the dosage of multiple drugs in polyprintlets at the point of dispensing. In the present study, 3D printed films and cylindrical polyprintlets were loaded with flexible, therapeutic dosages of two distinct drugs (amlodipine and lisinopril) across concentration ranges of 1-5% w/w and 2-10% w/w, respectively.

Shaping the future: recent advances of 3D printing in drug delivery and healthcare.

: Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a relatively new, rapid manufacturing technology that has found promising applications in the drug delivery and medical sectors. Arguably, never before has the healthcare industry experienced such a transformative technology. This review aims to discuss the state of the art of 3D printing technology in healthcare and drug delivery.

Direct powder extrusion 3D printing: Fabrication of drug products using a novel single-step process.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is revolutionising how we envision manufacturing in the pharmaceutical field. Here, we report for the first time the use of direct powder extrusion 3D printing: a novel single-step printing process for the production of printlets (3D printed tablets) directly from powdered materials. This new 3D printing technology was used to prepare amorphous solid dispersions of itraconazole using four different grades of hydroxypropylcellulose (HPC - UL, SSL, SL and L).

3D Printing of a Multi-Layered Polypill Containing Six Drugs Using a Novel Stereolithographic Method.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) has demonstrated great potential for multi-material fabrication because of its capability for printing bespoke and spatially separated material conformations. Such a concept could revolutionise the pharmaceutical industry, enabling the production of personalised, multi-layered drug products on demand. Here, we developed a novel stereolithographic (SLA) 3D printing method that, for the first time, can be used to fabricate multi-layer constructs (polypills) with variable drug content and/or shape.

Track-and-trace: Novel anti-counterfeit measures for 3D printed personalized drug products using smart material inks.

Printing technologies have been forecast to initiate a new era of personalised medicine in pharmaceuticals. To facilitate integration, a non-destructive and robust method of product authenticity is required. This study reports, for the first time, the interface between 3D printing and 2D inkjet printing technologies in order to fabricate a drug-loaded 3D printed tablet (printlet) with a unique track-and-trace measure in a single step process.

3D Printed Pellets (Miniprintlets): A Novel, Multi-Drug, Controlled Release Platform Technology.

Selective laser sintering (SLS) is a single-step three-dimensional printing (3DP) process that can be leveraged to engineer a wide array of drug delivery systems. The aim of this work was to utilise SLS 3DP, for the first time, to produce small oral dosage forms with modified release properties. As such, paracetamol-loaded 3D printed multiparticulates, termed miniprintlets, were fabricated in 1 mm and 2 mm diameters.

3D printed drug products: Non-destructive dose verification using a rapid point-and-shoot approach.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) has the potential to cause a paradigm shift in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, enabling personalised medicines to be produced on-demand. To facilitate integration into healthcare, non-destructive characterisation techniques are required to ensure final product quality. Here, the use of process analytical technologies (PAT), including near infrared spectroscopy (NIR) and Raman confocal microscopy, were evaluated on paracetamol-loaded 3D printed cylindrical tablets composed of an acrylic polymer (Eudragit L100-55).

Printing T and T oral drug combinations as a novel strategy for hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroidism is a chronic and debilitating disease that is estimated to affect 3% of the general population. Clinical experience has highlighted the synergistic value of combining triiodothyronine (T) and thyroxine (T) for persistent or recurrent symptoms. However, thus far a platform that enables the simultaneous and independent dosing of more than one drug for oral administration has not been developed.

3D printed medicines: A new branch of digital healthcare.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) is a highly disruptive technology with the potential to change the way pharmaceuticals are designed, prescribed and produced. Owing to its low cost, diversity, portability and simplicity, fused deposition modeling (FDM) is well suited to a multitude of pharmaceutical applications in digital health. Favourably, through the combination of digital and genomic technologies, FDM enables the remote fabrication of drug delivery systems from 3D models having unique shapes, sizes and dosages, enabling greater control over the release characteristics and hence bioavailability of medications.

Reshaping drug development using 3D printing.

The pharmaceutical industry stands on the brink of a revolution, calling for the recognition and embracement of novel techniques. 3D printing (3DP) is forecast to reshape the way in which drugs are designed, manufactured, and used. Although a clear trend towards personalised fabrication is perceived, here we accentuate the merits and shortcomings of each technology, providing insights into aspects such as the efficiency of production, global supply, and logistics.

3D printing of drug-loaded gyroid lattices using selective laser sintering.

Three-dimensional printing (3DP) is gaining momentum in the field of pharmaceuticals, offering innovative opportunities for medicine manufacture. Selective laser sintering (SLS) is a novel, high resolution and single-step printing technology that we have recently introduced to the pharmaceutical sciences. The aim of this work was to use SLS 3DP to fabricate printlets (3D printed tablets) with cylindrical, gyroid lattice and bi-layer structures having customisable release characteristics.

3D Printing Pharmaceuticals: Drug Development to Frontline Care.

3D printing (3DP) is forecast to be a highly revolutionary technology within the pharmaceutical sector. In particular, the main benefits of 3DP lie in the production of small batches of medicines, each with tailored dosages, shapes, sizes and release characteristics. The manufacture of medicines in this way may finally lead to the concept of personalised medicines becoming a reality.

Personalisation of warfarin therapy using thermal ink-jet printing.

Warfarin is a widely used anticoagulant that is critical in reducing patient morbidity and mortality associated with thromboembolic disorders. However, its narrow therapeutic index and large inter-individual variability can lead to complex dosage regimes. Formulating warfarin as an orodispersible film (ODF) using thermal ink-jet (TIJ) printing could enable personalisation of therapy to simplify administration.