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https://doi.org/10.4081/dr.2025.10306

Microinfusion of medications into the skin as a drug delivery technique: a narrative review

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Published: 4 November 2025
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Microinfusion of medications, transdermal drug delivery, tattoo machine drug delivery, MMP® technique, dermatological drug administration

Authors

Khalid Nabil Nagshabandi
khalidnagshabandi@gmail.com
https://orcid.org/0009-0008-6577-6463
Department of Dermatology, College of Medicine, King Saud University Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Raed Alojayri
Department of Dermatology, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Abdulaziz Alghufaili
College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Mona Alkallabi
Department of Dermatology, College of Medicine, King Saud University Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Microinfusion of medications into the skin (MMP®) is an innovative method that employs tattoo devices to administer pharmaceuticals transdermally. This technique facilitates the formation of microchannels in the skin, allowing for localized drug deposition with minimal systemic absorption and fewer adverse effects. A literature search was conducted using PubMed and Google Scholar to identify studies discussing the application of MMP® as a transdermal drug delivery method, covering publications up to October 2025. All studies identified through the literature search were summarized in chronological order from the earliest (2013) to the most recent (2025). This arrangement was chosen to illustrate the progressive evolution of the MMP® technique and its expanding clinical applications over time. Our research found 14 studies that evaluated the effectiveness of the tattoo machine for transdermal drug administration. Eight studies focused on MMP® for alopecia treatments, demonstrating notable improvements in androgenetic alopecia, alopecia areata, and frontal fibrosing alopecia, with minimal adverse reactions reported. Six studies investigated its role in treating scars and striae, showing significant lesion improvement. One study examined its use with bleomycin in basal cell carcinoma treatment, and another assessed its impact on psoriasis vulgaris with cyclosporine A and methotrexate (MTX). MMP® represents a promising, minimally invasive transdermal delivery system with a growing body of evidence supporting its application in alopecia, oncologic dermatology, and pigmentary disorders. The ability to uniformly distribute medications at targeted skin depths, combined with its favorable safety profile, highlights its potential as a valuable alternative to conventional delivery methods. Furthermore, the microneedling effect of the tattoo device itself may confer therapeutic benefits independent of pharmaceutical administration.

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1.
Nagshabandi KN, Alojayri R, Alghufaili A, Alkallabi M. Microinfusion of medications into the skin as a drug delivery technique: a narrative review. Dermatol Reports [Internet]. 2025 Nov. 4 [cited 2026 Apr. 18];. Available from: https://journals.pagepress.net/dr/article/view/10306
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