Recent Trends in Nanocarriers for the Management of Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a pruritic inflammatory skin condition with increasing global prevalence, almost affecting 15% to 30% of children and 5% of adults. AD results due to a complex interaction between the impaired skin barrier function, allergens, and immunological cells. Topical corticosteroids or calcineurin inhibitors in the form of creams or ointments are the mainstay of therapy, but they have low skin penetration and skin barrier repair efficiency.

The above limitations of conventional dosage forms have motivated the development of nanoformulations of drugs for improved penetration and deposition in the skin for better management of AD.

Databases, such as Pubmed, Elsevier, and Google Scholar, were reviewed for the investigations or reviews published related to the title.

The present review discusses the advantages of nanoformulations for the management of AD. Further, it also discusses the various types of topically investigated nanoformulations, i.e., polymeric nanoparticles, inorganic nanoparticles, solid lipid nanoparticles, liposomes, ethosomes, transfersomes, cubosomes, and nanoemulsion for the management of atopic dermatitis. In addition, it also discusses advancements in nanoformulations, such as nanofibres, nanosponges, micelles, and nanoformulations embedded textiles development for the management of AD.

The nanoformulations of drugs can be a better alternative for the topical management of AD with enhanced skin penetration and deposition of drugs with reduced systemic side effects and better patient compliance.