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Unmet technological demands in orodispersible films for age-appropriate paediatric drug delivery

Indhu Annie Chacko1, Gayathri Ramachandran1, M S Sudheesh2

  • 1Department of Pharmaceutics, Amrita School of Pharmacy, AIMS Health Sciences Campus, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, 682041, Ponekkara, Kochi, India.

Drug Delivery and Translational Research
|November 13, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Developing age-appropriate formulations for children is crucial for safe medication delivery and adherence. Orodispersible films (ODF) show promise in addressing challenges in pediatric drug delivery, improving patient acceptance.

Area of Science:

  • Pharmaceutical Sciences
  • Paediatric Drug Delivery
  • Formulation Development

Background:

  • Paediatric drug delivery faces significant challenges, including unknown excipient safety, lack of age-appropriate formulations, poor taste-masking, and limited pharmacokinetic data.
  • Ensuring age-appropriateness is vital for improving medical adherence and reducing medication errors in children.
  • Predicting the biopharmaceutical performance of paediatric formulations based on age remains an unmet need.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the challenges and potential solutions in developing age-appropriate paediatric formulations.
  • To explore the role of orodispersible films (ODF) as a promising age-appropriate formulation technology for paediatric drug delivery.
  • To discuss technological advancements that can enhance the acceptance and efficacy of ODF in paediatric patients.

Main Methods:

  • Review of current literature on paediatric drug delivery challenges.
  • Analysis of orodispersible film (ODF) technology and its potential applications in paediatrics.
  • Discussion of technological improvements such as taste masking, solubility enhancement, and 3D printing for ODF preparation.

Main Results:

  • Orodispersible films (ODF) are identified as a promising technology for age-appropriate paediatric drug delivery.
  • Technological advancements in taste masking, drug solubility, dissolution rate, and flexible dosing enhance ODF suitability.
  • 3D printing in a Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) setting offers customisation and extemporaneous preparation of ODF.

Conclusions:

  • ODF technology offers a viable solution to address the critical need for age-appropriate formulations in paediatric medicine.
  • Improvements in ODF technology can significantly enhance patient acceptance and medical adherence in the paediatric population.
  • Further development and implementation of ODF, particularly with 3D printing, hold great potential for advancing paediatric drug delivery.

Keywords:
Amorphous solid dispersionBiorelevant dissolutionOrodispersible filmsTaste masking

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