US demand for drug delivery systems (including the value of the delivered drugs) will increase over ten percent annually to $132 billion in 2012. Growth opportunities will extend to a wide range of compounds and formulations. Oral drug delivery systems will continue to account for the largest share of demand through 2012. Advances in biotechnology will lead to rapid growth opportunities for parenteral drug delivery systems. Led by monoclonal antibodies and nanopolymer therapies, parenteral formulations will eventually surpass oral dosages as the largest group of drug delivery systems based on end-use product revenues. These and other trends are presented in Drug Delivery Systems, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry research firm.

Demand for oral drug delivery systems will expand 7.1 percent per year through 2012, due to favorable cost advantages, a wealth of potential new product applications and significant efficacy advantages over conventional dosage formulations. Spurred by ingestion and onset-of-action benefits, orally disintegrating tablets and transmucosal drugs will generate strong growth opportunities in the delivery of pain control and other critical care medication. Ease of administration advantages will promote the widening use of chewable tablets.

Among all pharmaceutical dosage formulations, parenteral preparations will provide the strongest growth opportunities for drug delivery systems, with demand expanding over 15 percent annually through 2012. Precise targeting advantages in the treatment of cancer and other debilitating diseases will broaden demand for therapeutic monoclonal antibodies.

An increasing incidence of chronic respiratory conditions, coupled with the need for safer and more effective therapies, will keep demand for inhalation drug delivery systems advancing favorably. Based on widespread use in asthma therapy, dry powder inhaler formulations will continue to record the largest share of sales. However, metered dose drugs will see slightly faster gains in demand due to ongoing improvements in particle size and propellent safety. Led by new drug-eluting stents with thinner struts and enhanced safety profiles, implantable drug delivery systems will recapture rapid growth opportunities in cardiovascular medication. Lastly, advances in electrotransport technologies will broaden applications for transdermal patches, especially in cardiovascular, central nervous system and hormonal drugs that require continuous dosing.