Oral Fast-Dissolving DDD Fabricated Using 3DP
A novel fast dissolving drug delivery device (DDD) with loose powders in it was designed and fabricated using the three dimensional printing (3DP) process. Based on computer-aided design models, the DDD containing the drug acetaminophen were prepared automatically by 3DP system. The inner powder regions were carried out by depositing the binder solutions onto selected regions during the layer-printing processes. The DDD exhibited standard-met mechanical performance with an acceptable hardness value of 56.45 N/cm2 and 3.65% total mass loss during the friability tests. Environmental scanning electron microscope image clearly showed that particles in the printed regions were diminished or even disappeared, and bound together, whereas the un-printed regions was incompact with cracks and fissures in them. All the DDD were disintegrated and wetted rapidly in the in vitro tests. The average disintegration time of DDD was 17.9s and the average wetting time was 56.6 s. The in vitro dissolution tests informed that 96.3% of the drug was released in the initial two minutes. 3DP is capable of offering strategies for the research and development of novel fast dissolving DDD.