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Review
. 2022 Oct 17;14(10):2210.
doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14102210.

Advancements in Rectal Drug Delivery Systems: Clinical Trials, and Patents Perspective

Ritu Rathi  1 , Sanshita  1 , Alpesh Kumar  1 , Vivekanand Vishvakarma  1 , Kampanart Huanbutta  2 , Inderbir Singh  1 , Tanikan Sangnim  3
Affiliations
Review

Advancements in Rectal Drug Delivery Systems: Clinical Trials, and Patents Perspective

Ritu Rathi et al. Pharmaceutics. .

Abstract

The rectal route is an effective route for the local and systemic delivery of active pharmaceutical ingredients. The environment of the rectum is relatively constant with low enzymatic activity and is favorable for drugs having poor oral absorption, extensive first-pass metabolism, gastric irritation, stability issues in the gastric environment, localized activity, and for drugs that cannot be administered by other routes. The present review addresses the rectal physiology, rectal diseases, and pharmaceutical factors influencing rectal delivery of drugs and discusses different rectal drug delivery systems including suppositories, suspensions, microspheres, nanoparticles, liposomes, tablets, and hydrogels. Clinical trials on various rectal drug delivery systems are presented in tabular form. Applications of different novel drug delivery carriers viz. nanoparticles, liposomes, solid lipid nanoparticles, microspheres, transferosomes, nano-niosomes, and nanomicelles have been discussed and demonstrated for their potential use in rectal administration. Various opportunities and challenges for rectal delivery including recent advancements and patented formulations for rectal drug delivery have also been included.

Keywords: clinical trials; novel drug delivery; rectal; rectal diseases; rectal drug delivery.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic showing venous and lymphatic drainage from the rectum and portosystemic shunting.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Factors influencing rectal drug delivery.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Classification of rectal drug delivery systems.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Mechanism of drug release of the nanosystems in rectum.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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