Breaking News on Pharmaceutical Technology Needle-free drug delivery is the wave of the future, says Kalorama By Natalie Morrison, 23-Aug-2011
Related topics: Drug delivery systems, Packaging machinery & supplies, Packaging
The worldwide market for needle-free drug delivery will double in value over the next five years, according to new market research by Kalorama.
In a report titled Needle-Free Drug Delivery Markets, author Mary Anne Crandall predicts the increasingly popular delivery method’s benefits, such as ease of use, safety, and cost, will see the market soar from its $3.6bn (€2.5bn) value now to $6.2bn in 2016.
The figures are based on a compound annual growth rate of 15.1 per cent for 2011-2016.
And Crandall said the boom in trade could be largely down to the development of needle-free jet injectors; devices which release medication through a burst of pressured liquid or powder through a nozzle against the patients’ skin.
She wrote: “Needle-free jet injection devices can and should play a major role in solving the problems of needle-stick injuries and needle phobia in the United States.”
Crandall also suggests that jet injectors such as Bioject’s Biojector 2000, Vitajet’s Vitajet 3 device, PowderMed’s PowderJect, and Zogenix’s DosePro, could benefit from the shift towards self-administration of parenteral drugs.
Mountains to climb
However, Crandall acknowledges several potential issues that manufacturers should keep in mind.
Firstly, jet injectors are unable to efficiently administer drugs into the intramuscular compartment. Meaning that drugs delivered using such systems need to be given in larger quantities.
Needle-free technology could also be a solution to the dangers of needle stick injury in the third world, wh