Recent pharmaceutical research has focused on controlled drug delivery having an advantage over conventional methods. Adequate controlled plasma drug levels, reduced side effects as well as improved patient compliance are some of the benefits that these systems may offer. Controlled delivery systems that can provide zero-order drug delivery have the potential for maximizing efficacy while minimizing dose frequency and toxicity. Thus, zero-order drug release is ideal in a large area of drug delivery which has therefore led to the development of various technologies with such drug release patterns. Systems such as multilayered tablets and other geometrically altered devices have been created to perform this function. One of the principles of multilayered tablets involves creating a constant surface area for release. Polymeric materials play an important role in the functioning of these systems. Technologies developed to date include among others: Geomatrix(®) multilayered tablets, which utilizes specific polymers that may act as barriers to control drug release; Procise(®), which has a core with an aperture that can be modified to achieve various types of drug release; core-in-cup tablets, where the core matrix is coated on one surface while the circumference forms a cup around it; donut-shaped devices, which possess a centrally-placed aperture hole and Dome Matrix(®) as well as "release modules assemblage", which can offer alternating drug release patterns. This review discusses the novel altered geometric system technologies that have been developed to provide controlled drug release, also focusing on polymers that have been employed in such developments.
Keywords: controlled drug delivery; geometrically altered devices; multilayered tablets; polymeric materials; release modules assemblage.