Title:A Survey on the Applications of Implantable Micropump Systems in Drug Delivery
VOLUME: 11 ISSUE: 1
Author(s):Ali Mahnama, Ahmad Nourbakhsh and Ghader Ghorbaniasl
Affiliation:Hydraulic Machinery Research Inst., School of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Tehran, North Kargar St., Tehran, Iran.
Keywords:Insulin therapy, Intracochlear drug delivery, Intraocular drug delivery, Metronomic chemotherapy, Micropump.
Abstract:Systemic drug delivery is the most prevalent form of the drug administration; but it is not possible to extend
this approach to all of diseases. In the traditional approaches of drug delivery, the drug spreads through whole of body and
this could cause severe side effects in the healthy parts. In addition, in some parts of our body like the eye, ear and brain,
there are biological barriers against drug penetration which made drug delivery to these organs as a challenging work.
Micropumps are one of the MEMS based devices with great capabilities in controlled drug administration. The most
prevalent application of micropumps in drug delivery is known as continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) for
diabetic patients; but our study showed that there are some other ongoing investigations to extend application of micropumps
in new treatment methods for some incurred diseases.
