PHARMACEUTICAL POLYMERS IN DRUG DELIVERY: AN OVERVIEW

Polymers have significantly assisted to the advancement of the drug delivery devices by adjusting the drug release at consistent rates over extended durations, facilitating cyclic administration, and targeting to the desired site. Polymers are frequently utilized as taste-masking, stabilizing, and proactive agents. The key characteristics that render polymers appealing options for drug delivery include their safety, effectiveness, hydrophilicity, non-immunogenicity, biological inertness, favourable pharmaceutical kinetics, and the presence of functional groups that facilitate covalent crosslinking, targeting ligands, or copolymer formation. Natural polymers that are more commonly used, like arginine, collagen, chitosan, and carrageenans are discussed for their possible application in polymeric drug delivery systems. Synthetic polymers exhibit elevated immunogenicity, limiting their viability for prolonged application. Non-biodegradable polymers necessitate subsequent removal post-drug release at the intended site. Progress in polymer science has made possible in the emergence of various innovative drug delivery systems, including hydrogels, liposomes, nanoparticles, micelles, patches, implants, and others. Biodegradable polymers have garnered considerable interest because they can degrade into non-toxic monomers, enabling sustained drug release from biodegradable polymer-based controlled-release devices. This review delves into the commonly used synthetic and natural polymers that are used in drug delivery, consideration of selection of polymers and recent advancement in polymer research.