Understanding Microneedle Penetration Mechanics
Steven J. Henry, Walter L. Brown, Richard P. Vinci
Department of Bioengineering, Materials Science and Engineering
Abstract
Drug delivery using a transdermal patch is painless and easy to self administer, but large macromolecule therapeutic drugs such as insulin cannot pass through the skin. Microneedles on the underside of a patch can break the outer skin barrier, enhancing drug transport without pain or bleeding. Our long term vision is to develop and validate a model of microneedle penetration and puncture of a polymer that has similar mechanical properties as human skin. We have now developed a method for identifying puncture success from experimental data, and have shown that there is a clear dependence of puncture success on microneedle half-angle.
Bio
Steven Henry is a Senior bioengineering major at Lehigh University. As president of the Rossin Junior Fellows, he leads a dynamic group of upperclassmen and graduate engineers that seek to advance the mission of the engineering college at Lehigh. He is currently a Colonel George Breinig Memorial Scholar and four time recipient of the Wyeth Chairman?s Scholarship. Steven works closely with mentors Walter L. Brown, PhD, and Richard P. Vinci, PhD, in elucidating the parameters that govern successful puncture generation by a microneedle in a model soft solid. Steven will be pursuing his doctoral studies at the University of Pennsylvania in the lab of Dan Hammer, PhD, through the Department of Bioengineering.
