Transdermal delivery of colchicine using dissolvable microneedle arrays for the treatment of acute gout in a rat model.

Colchicine (Col) is used to prevent and treat acute gout flare; however, its therapeutic use is strictly limited owing to severe gastrointestinal side effects after oral administration. Therefore, we developed a dissolvable Col-loaded microneedle (MN) with hyaluronic acid to deliver Col the transdermal route. We studied the preparation, mechanical properties, skin insertion, skin irritation, drug content, and transdermal release of the Col-loaded MN.