Transdermal Drug Delivery: Determining Permeation Parameters Using Tape Stripping and Numerical Modeling

The function of transdermal drug delivery (TDD) systems is complex due to the multiple layers necessary for controlling the rate of drug release and the interaction with the patient’s skin. In this work, we study a particular aspect of a TDD system, that is, the parameters that describe the drug permeation through the skin layers. Studies of the diffusion of two compounds were carried out and supported by tape stripping and numerical modeling. The experimental studies are carried out for porcine skin in a Franz diffusion cell and tape stripping is used to quantify the concentration of drug in the stratum corneum. A multi-layered numerical model, based on Fickian diffusion, is used to determine the unknown parameters that define the skin’s permeability, such as the partition between layers and the mass transfer coefficients due to the surface barrier. A significant correlation was found between the numerical modeling and experimental results, indicating that the partition and mass transfer effects at the interlayer boundary are accurately represented in the numerical model. We find that numerical modeling is essential to fully describe the diffusion characteristics.