About half of these affected patients, usually the ones with more severe cases, opt for therapeutic treatment, while others prefer alternative medicines. This low adherence to medication is primarily driven by high dosage frequency or harmful side effects. . The currently administered class of therapeutics, Biologics, are especially cautioned for detrimental and unknown long-term side effects.

Some elementary drugs with milder side-effects such as anti-inflammatory, corticosteroids, antispasmodic have low efficacy and thus require a high dose administration to ensure enough medication reaches the target site. . On the other hand, despite the enhanced efficacy of chemotherapeutic drugs or biologics, they are often heavily burdened with adverse side-effects. Many of these unfavorable effects occur due to premature release of the drug causing untimely and improper absorption. A customized targeted Colon drug delivery technology would not only prevent such issues but also stimulate the intended efficacy of the drug.

This opportunity with SLIDD can bring about a new thinking that will benefit patients suffering from many of these conditions. Firstly, reaching the target site of the colon will reduce the quantum of the drug that currently may need to account for transit losses in the GIT.  Secondly, modern techniques can be deployed toalter the safety and efficacy of the existing APIs that require Colon delivery by modifying the release patterns and pathway of the drug, lowering its consequential side effects. Armored with these possibilities, pharma developers can focus on expanding their drug portfolio and create more holistic therapeutic options. Pharma companies with the ability to cater to reducing side effects and increasing efficacy simultaneously, will be able to address a larger patient population and thereby increase revenues. Given the push to reduce the cost of therapies, this may help Pharma companies increase their profit margins by utilizing existing APIs in new forms.

Technology and its use in medicine can play a revolutionary role to benefit human health. Among several challenges faced in drug discovery, the oral delivery of a drug and ensuring its bioavailability for maximum benefits has posed to be the biggest. If the action site of the chosen drug is the COLON, its bioavailability at doses that do not cause side effects remains unresolved. To name a few are, Mesalamine where only 20-30% of the drug is systematically absorbed when given orally, Budenoside with only 40% absorption and Capecitabine having less than 5% absorption when given orally. Several others include Hydrocortisone, Prednisolone, Rifaximin, Hyoscyamine, Doxycycline, Metronidazole and so on, that not only have poor bioavailability but have several side effects on the patient. This has directly led to patients discontinuing the drug while they continue to suffer from the ailment. NBI’s SLIDD is an exceptional technology that works with the perfect harmonization of 3 essential components that work independently to deliver the highest concentration and bioavailability of the chosen drug to the action site of the COLON.