Oral transmucosal drug delivery

Abstract:

The properties of oral mucosa (high accessibility, with excellent blood supply and good permeability) makes it an attractive and promising site for local and systemic drug delivery. Transmucosal drug delivery has many advantages in the treatment of oral and systemic diseases: it facilitates drug delivery, improves patient compliance in comparison with parenteral route, provides quick onset of action and improves systemic bioavailability of drug, bypasses first-pass metabolism, ensures sustained and protected drug delivery and lower dosage with increased efficacy. Therefore, oral mucosa provides exceptional options for the treatment of many local and systemic diseases, allowing the use of a broad spectrum of drugs, even those with limited routes of administration for systemic use. The development of mucoadhesives, sustained drug release, permeability enhancers and drug delivery vectors supported with the novel technologies of molecular biology and nanotechnology enhances the efficient drug delivery across the oral mucosa. 

Key words:
drug administration, oral; dental care; drug delivery systems