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Micromachines
Special Issues
Additive Manufacturing for Medical Applications, 2nd Edition
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Additive Manufacturing for Medical Applications, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "D3: 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 1285

Editors

Dr. Lawrence Kulinsky

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, Irvine, 4200 Engineering Gateway, Irvine, CA 92697-3975, USA
Interests: micromanufacturing; nanomanufacturing; hybrid manufacturing technologies; electrokinetic micro- and nano-assembly; personalized healthcare; lab-on-chip platforms; drug delivery; biosensors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Snehan Peshin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Interests: diagnostics for veterinary applications; fluid flow in porous substrates; point-of-care devices; centrifugal microfluidics; paper microfluidics; thin-layer chromatography
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Additive manufacturing evolves rapidly from technology used mostly for prototypes to advanced fabrication technology increasingly used for making functional parts. Additive manufacturing is usually not the least expensive technique for mass production, but it offers a way to produce customized parts without the need to manufacture expensive masks or molds. Thus medical technology, with its need to have an individual fit for every patient—from dental implants to surgical models—is an ideal application for additive manufacturing. Therefore, development of new 3D printing technologies and other additive manufacturing methods find cutting edge application in medical care and biotechnology. This Special Issue seeks to present review articles and state of the art research papers that focus on the development of additive manufacturing techniques for a variety of medical applications ranging from tissue engineering to biofluidic platforms and personalized medical implants.

Dr. Lawrence Kulinsky
Dr. Snehan Peshin
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • additive manufacturing
  • 3D printing
  • stereolithography
  • fused deposition modeling
  • selective laser sintering
  • selective laser melting
  • direct laser melting
  • tissue engineering
  • medical implants
  • lab-on-chip devices
  • medical models

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

21 pages, 3486 KB  
Article
3D-Printing-Assisted Fabrication and Characterization of Pregabalin-Loaded PVA/PVP Dissolving Microneedle Arrays
by Arjun Gokulan Manivannan, Sreeja Balakrishna Pillai Suseela, Mohana Priya Kandan, Narayanan Jayshankar, Bhupendra G. Prajapati, Chitra Vellapandian, Suhaskumar Patel and Dignesh Khunt
Micromachines 2026, 17(6), 676; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi17060676 - 29 May 2026
Viewed by 674
Abstract
Background: A transdermal drug delivery system has significant benefits over conventional routes; however, its effectiveness is limited by the barrier properties of the stratum corneum. Dissolving microneedles (DMNs) have emerged as a minimally invasive strategy to enhance drug permeation while improving patient compliance. [...] Read more.
Background: A transdermal drug delivery system has significant benefits over conventional routes; however, its effectiveness is limited by the barrier properties of the stratum corneum. Dissolving microneedles (DMNs) have emerged as a minimally invasive strategy to enhance drug permeation while improving patient compliance. The integration of advanced fabrication techniques such as 3D printing enables precise control over microneedle geometry and reproducibility. Objective: This study aimed to fabricate and characterize pregabalin-loaded PVA/PVP dissolving microneedle arrays using a 3D-printing-assisted mold fabrication approach for efficient transdermal drug delivery. Methods: Microneedle master molds were fabricated using 3D printing, followed by replication using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to obtain negative molds. Pregabalin-loaded bilayer microneedles were prepared using a micromolding technique with PVA/PVP polymers. The formulation was evaluated through rheological analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), mechanical strength testing, insertion studies, swelling behavior, drug loading efficiency, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and in vitro drug release studies. Results: The fabricated microneedles exhibited uniform geometry with sharp tips and no structural defects. Rheological analysis confirmed shear-thinning behavior suitable for mold filling. The microneedles demonstrated adequate mechanical strength (~3.3 N/needle) and efficient insertion into the parafilm model. Drug loading efficiency was high (92.4%), indicating effective encapsulation. FTIR analysis confirmed compatibility between drug and polymers, while DSC and XRD results indicated partial amorphization of pregabalin within the polymer matrix. The formulation showed a biphasic drug release profile with an initial burst followed by sustained release, achieving ~96.8% cumulative release over 24 h. Conclusions: The study successfully demonstrates a robust and reproducible 3D-printing-assisted approach for fabricating pregabalin-loaded dissolving microneedles. The developed system exhibited desirable mechanical, physicochemical, and drug release properties, highlighting its potential as an effective transdermal drug delivery platform. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Additive Manufacturing for Medical Applications, 2nd Edition)
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