A compact and disposable transdermal drug delivery system

This work presents a portable transdermal drug delivery system that combines a magnetically actuated micro gear pump with a microneedle array. Micropart fabrication is performed through DXRL and LIGA techniques. The manufacturing process of both micropump and microneedle array are described together with wear issues. Results show that the assembled device can deliver rates that go from 0.1 to 1.2 ml/min at gear speed ranging from 1000 to 8500 rpm. First skin piercing experiments are also described. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.