Interdisciplinary Traditional Chinese Medicine Microneedles in Skin Disease Treatment: Recent Advances and Challenges

The document reviews recent advances in using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) microneedles for treating skin diseases, emphasizing their potential to enhance therapeutic efficacy and reduce systemic toxicity. TCM microneedles improve drug bioavailability and stability by creating microchannels in the skin, allowing direct delivery of active compounds. They offer advantages such as painlessness, minimal invasiveness, and controlled release, making them promising for conditions like psoriasis, eczema, and androgenetic alopecia. The review categorizes TCM microneedles into various types and discusses their design and compatibility with TCM compounds. It highlights innovative delivery systems that enhance the efficacy of compounds like kaempferol, ginsenoside Rg3, and berberine. Despite promising results, challenges remain in scaling up production and achieving regulatory approval, necessitating further research to optimize formulations and ensure safety and efficacy.