The Pharmacy Service of the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital will conduct a study to test the efficacy, tolerability and level of acceptance of a 3D printed drug, designed for children. Minors (between 6 and 18 years of age) who have to take medication, especially those with chronic pathologies and who require daily treatment are a key focus of this experience. As you probably know, several projects have already demonstrated the fabrication of 3D printed drugs for adults.
The 3D printer helps to create a new formulation that will help to dose the drug in a personalized way for each patient and hopes to improve the experience of children who have to take medication on a daily basis.
Using a 3D printer, the team can produce medicines in semi-solid and chewable forms (similar to candy) from the active ingredient combined with suitable excipients.
“So far the families are the ones who have to dose the drug by measuring the volume of syrup, but this new method is much more convenient and avoids possible errors in the dose administered“, explains Dr. Maria Josep Cabañas, head of the Pharmacy Section of the Children’s Hospital and Women’s Hospital of Vall d’Hebron and researcher of the Basic, Translational and Clinical Pharmacy group of the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR).
Customization options include the possibility to create a formulation based on children’s weight and other clinical characteristics. Not to mention that “syrups can sometimes have an unpleasant taste”, Dr. Cabañas recalls. “We have worked to make the printed medications have a taste that masks the active ingredient“, she adds.
In this sense, it is also expected to bring other benefits, such as ease of transport because these printed medications do not need to be kept in a refrigerator, increasing the safety and confidence of the families administering the drug and, in some cases, favoring the taking of the medication outside the home, the hospital states.
Remember, you can post jobopportunities in the AM Industry on 3D ADEPT Media free of charge or look for a job via our job board. Make sure to follow us on our social networks and subscribe to our weekly newsletter : Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn & Instagram ! If you want to be featured in the next issue of our digital magazine or if you hear a story that needs to be heard, make sure to send it to contact@3dadept.com